


Nightly Business

by Eliott_Rust



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-27
Updated: 2016-05-19
Packaged: 2018-05-23 12:22:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 17
Words: 30,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6116329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eliott_Rust/pseuds/Eliott_Rust
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of Two Guns (male), from Sector 6 slums and Wall Market gang to post ShinRa era in some slices of life.</p><p>Ongoing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I renamed Two Guns Rolfo for the occasion. Because he deserves a name. 
> 
> Non beta read.
> 
> Warnings : Mature, graphic violence and sex, mentions of addiction and drug use, non con and rape, murder, well, anything that you could expect from Corneo's men and from ShinRa Turks, really.

**-Chapter I-**

Rolfo woke up, startled. Immediately, he felt a creeping headache crawling under his skull. Someone was sleeping with her head on his naked chest, and another chick was lying on the other side of the large mattress, with her back to him. Behind the heavily adorned folding screen next to them, a loud snoring disturbed the morning. One of the guys, probably, Rolfo thought. A foul smell of vomit, latex and things barely conceivable hung in the room. He frowned.

How many times already had he woken up in Corneo’s mansion, with little to no memories of the night before and a skin smelling of alcohol, weed and sex? Rolfo was getting tired of the little perverted games they were playing down in Wall Market. Truth was, he simply did not enjoy their idea of having fun anymore.

He was about to shove the girl’s head away from him, disgusted by everything in that very house, when she snaked her arms around him and left a trail of feathery kisses between his pecs.

“-For fuck’s sake, shit, what in the world are you doing here, sleeping on me like I’m a fucking cushion?”

A short silence, as their eyes met, and he woke up for good.

“-Olivia? But when did you..? How the fuck..?”

A strained voice whispered back, gently mocking his obvious parentage with exotic pet-names.

-Why hello, cucciolo , thank you, I slept very well, and I love you too.”

As soon as he had recognized her, he settled back into the indecent amount of tasteless pillows they had been sleeping on, among other things.

Olivia was one of the Honeybee’s hostesses, and they got along quite well lately, always seeking any excuse to sneak into each other’s pants. Or skirt, for that matter. Yet Rolfo did not remember fucking her last night, and he was almost sure that she wasn’t even there when he fell asleep, or passed out, or whatever.

“-Figured I would drop by to kiss you goodnight after my shift. Had to kick my way to your sorry depraved ass, you little bastard.”

He smiled. She was probably referring to that young lady still sound asleep on his right hand side.

“-Come on, mia cara , I thought we said something about a “no commitment” rule.  
-Yeah, pretty much. But if you’re gonna bang such a cutie, you’d better call me next time, promise, amore ?  
-You’ll be doing her more than I will, I’m afraid. She’s one of the new girls. Starting from … -He gestured aimlessly- … probably next week, as soon as they’re “trained” enough.  
-You mean as soon as the Don gets tired of playing upstairs with the prettiest one, right? And this one’s been sleeping with you last night? Oh gods, poor little thing. No wonder she needs some rest. Hope you were nicer to her than you were to me.  
-What can I say? You know I’m no good, yet they all want a piece of me, gattina .”

Olivia giggled and leaned to kiss Rolfo on the lips in spite of his malboro-like breath. He kissed her back. Eagerly. Her unexpected presence at his side sure enlightened the jaded bodyguard’s day, but he had little time to lounge. He checked his watch. Almost eleven AM. It was about time to move. Corneo would still be asleep, of course, but Rolfo prided himself on always being the first on the deck. He knew he was Corneo’s major asset, he knew he was good, and lately he started thinking he was even too good to be one of the Don’s lapdogs. He had to squeeze his way away from the guy, without becoming his next target. Pentiti  weren’t granted a long life expectancy under the pizza. He knew that too well, for he usually was the executioner of the Don’s wrath.

He pushed Olivia aside, gently, this time.

“-Gotta get up. And have a fucking shower.  
-I’ll wash your back.  
-Ah ah, I’d totally dig this but I ain’t got no time for fun, Livia.”

A pout appeared on her delicate lips.

“-Yet you had enough time to get a taste of all the new chicks, I reckon?  
-Not all of them. I’m only human, amore.  
-You’re getting old, sweetie.  
-Don’t tell me.”

He gathered his discarded clothes, put his boxers on, not bothering to fully get dressed, and left to the bathroom in the back of Corneo’s guard-dogs room, cautiously trying not to trip on someone sleeping, on empty bottles, on used condoms, or worse, on discarded syringes.

Upon entering the room, he turned the hot-tub off and shook his head.

“-Manolo?”

He roughly slapped his colleague, zonked out in the jacuzzi, a girl under each arm. As soon as Manolo opened a reddish eye, he ordered him to leave the ladies be, and to get his lazy ass out of the tub. Said ladies were still drinking some leftover champagne, and without the drugs and the alcohol in their systems, they’d probably realize they were freezing in the lukewarm bath.

“-Hey, ragazze , don’t let him be a drag, alright? Just wake him up next time and go get a bed. You’re gonna catch a cold.”

And Corneo won’t like that, because the last thing he needs is two sick, un-sexy, non-gainful hookers in his brothel, he thought to himself. But this, Rolfo wouldn’t tell them. They’ll learn how things work down here soon enough.

The warm water running on his sore skin was a blessing. Rolfo also felt some gashes itching on the whole surface of his back. That little kitten of last night had sharp nails, and she sure clawed him right. He reminisced about her small frame under his, over his, beside his. Yes, she was good. Sweet as candy. Hot and demanding. He had had lots of fun during the past hours. Yet he felt like he was going to puke. He washed his hair and every inch of his body with almost chirurgical caution, twice, and finally got fully dressed. The stench of his own clothes made him roll his eyes in self-loathing. He’d have to buy new ones, or drop at his place to change himself, the sooner the better.

He quickly decided he needed a new garb. Something fancier, something classier than the usual pimp style he used to be so proud of merely one year ago. Anyway, it’s not like money was an issue at all. He ended up wishing Corneo and the others hadn’t overslept, after all. As he crossed the bodyguards’ room again, he caught sight of Livia sleeping with the girl from last night in her arms.

Rolfo’s teeth clenched, and he muttered under his breath.

“-Little bitch. Trying to get me jealous, are you? I won’t fall for that trick.”

And that was almost true. The black-haired bodyguard obviously couldn’t claim faithfulness from a hustler who worked for his own Boss, let alone when he notoriously wasn’t the last one when it came to being a slut.    

 

**_Italian words :_ **

_Cucciolo: Puppy_  
Cara mia: My dear  
Amore: Love  
Gattina: Female kitten  
Pentito plur. Pentiti: Repented gangsters  
Ragazze: Girls


	2. Chapter 2

**-Chapter II-**

As morning reached its end, a distant rustle informed Rolfo that some of the inhabitants of the mansion were finally awake. He was sipping coffee, sitting at the bar in the kitchen. He was hungry as fuck, but couldn’t bring himself to swallow anything significant, because he felt all too nauseous for anything edible.

His employer appeared at the door, obviously pleased with himself, leaning on a deceptively young looking blonde-haired girl to maintain his balance. 

“-Ah, my boy, awake already? Good.”

He stumbled his way to one of the seats next to his right-hand man and patted the chick’s head.

“-Say, honey, would you pour daddy some good coffee?”

As she complied, readjusting the expensive looking silk kimono that kept falling from her shoulder, the Don leaned closer to Rolfo, talking in a hushed tone about some antics one of the pushers had been running lately. His skin stank of post-coital sweat and cigars.

“-I don’t know where or how he got the candy, but the word runs in Wall Market that he’s been selling stuff for his own sake. I provided him with a job, I gave him shelter, I fucking made him who he is. You know I always take good care of my boys, right, Rolfo? Have I not been like a father to all of you? An ungrateful prick, that’s what the sucker is. I cannot tolerate such a betrayal.”

The southern-born bodyguard nodded to everything the Boss said, suggested an investigation, and if required, exemplary punitive measures. This earned him an affectionate stroke on the back from the chubby man next to him.

“-You’re always so sharp, boy. You’ll become someone. As long as you remember your place.”

Rolfo lit a cigarette and exhaled the smoke. The girl had poured coffee for both men, and she was lazily cuddling against Corneo’s back. The young man wondered how sincere her tenderness really was.  

“-Good dogs don’t bite the hand that feeds them.  
-You got that right, my little wolf. You got that right.”

The Don suddenly turned to the blonde chick.

“-Say, baby, why don’t you go and doll up while we do some talking?”

She nodded without a word, maybe relieved to be left alone for a while. If the girls today had all chosen to be there, Rolfo wasn’t sure anymore that their choice was really as free as it seemed to be. When he first won his access to the mansion, he did not care about morals. He needed to survive. He wanted to be someone. Now, he thought that the someone he became was nothing more than a fucking jerk. Olivia was probably right: he was getting old. Actually, he had been feeling like he was a thousand years, lately. Exhaustion and remorse had crept down to the marrow of his bones, and there was nothing he could do to ease the dull ache residing in his stained soul.

Corneo stared at the woman’s back as she was leaving them.

“-My my, look at that little ass. She’s priceless, Rolfo. Priceless.”

He turned to his bodyguard again.

“-Were the others as sugary as this one? I bet you had your fun last night with every single one of them, right, boy? You’ve always been so insatiable, yet you look preoccupied, lately. Don’t hesitate to screw them good, it’ll make you feel better in no time. You know the Honeybee’s always open for my boys.”

Rolfo felt suddenly really sick, his tanned cheeks burning. He gulped down his coffee to earn some time before answering.

“-Yes, they’re all good. And I’ll do that, thank you, Boss.”

The Don burst in giggles.

“-Very well, very good, that’s the Rolfo I know. We’ve got good money to be earned. Lots of Gils. And them gals won’t turn their back on us, they need our protection too much. There are so many freaks around the Market. Poor little dolls, luckily we’re always here for them. But better safe than sorry: you’ll let them all know at the Inn about what happens to the bastards who dare betray me, you hear me, Rolfo? Make him cry. Make him plead. Make him squeal. Let everyone in the slums remember that they should fear my wolves.”

Rolfo crushed his cigarette in the ashtray in front of him.

“-Consider him history, Capo .  
-Fine. Wake the others up. Go get him. Check his stock. And if rumours prove to be true, erase him.”

The bodyguard rose and nodded to Corneo, before leaving to gather his crew.  He woke them up unceremoniously, opening the blinds wide and shaking their drunken asses awake.

“-Hi, folks. Time to work, you lazy bums.”

Olivia was gone. He realized it as he was looking for her in spite of him in the messy room, and scolded himself for getting too involved.

He managed to shake six of the guys awake, kicking the four others in retaliation, but they were so wasted that they probably didn’t even feel his pointy boots bruising their ribs. Rolfo sighed, and gave up. Seven would be more than enough, anyway. He decided to leave Jake and two more to secure the Mansion and the Inn when it opens, then ordered his hung-over mob to get ready asap.

 

**_Italian words :_ **

_Capo : Boss_


	3. Chapter 3

**-Chapter III-**

 

The head of the pusher made a disturbing sound as it hit the door of his refrigerator.

 “-So, Harvey, did your memory somehow come back to you?”

 Rolfo was sitting backwards on a chair, smoking absent-mindedly, purposedly speaking slowly, as if talking to a small kid caught red-handed.

 “-Where does this stuff come from? You’re not supposed to have that much in your stock, you know.”

 Harvey looked more dead than alive, all the blood drained from his face and sweat staining his t-shirt.

 “-I didn’t steal it. I swear. Please, Rolfo, I did not steal anything.”

 Rolfo stood up and went to the window, pushing the curtain aside to watch outside.

 “-Ha, tell me something I don’t already know, for fuck’s sake.”

 He took another drag of his cig, and walked around the terrified young man, held in place by Andrej, his most muscular lieutenant. The boy shrieked when the lit end of Rolfo’s smoke ended up melting the sensitive skin of his neck. Rolfo dropped the cigarette’s butt into the pusher’s dampened t-shirt.

 “-Have you ever heard of unfair trading, bambino[1]?

-Unf… What?

-Ah, I see we don’t have a bright mind inside that thick skull of yours.”

 He leisurely addressed the three colleagues he had dragged along.

 “-Someone willing to explain our little friend the etymology of loyalty, guys?”

 Andrej simply shrugged, the second guy put a knife out of his pocket, and the third one, who was only known by his pet-name Sailor due to his numerous tattoos, yawned before speaking, pointing out the man with the knife.

 “-I’m pretty sure Aki knows of some wutaian-style skin carving to make him understand for good.”

 Rolfo grinned viciously as he turned to witness the frightened expression on Harvey’s face.

 “-Ah, yes. He knows some for sure.”

 The man named Aki nodded. He was the silent type, dark hair, dark eyes, a small but powerful frame. He was nothing more than cold blooded efficiency, even according to Rolfo, famous himself for always remaining cool and collected whatever may happen. He got closer to the pusher who started to have an utter panic attack. Sailor and Rolfo helped the third guy hold him down on the kitchen table, as Aki cut intricate patterns into the skin of his chest.

Oh yes, little shitbag did squeal. The wutaian man made elaborate slits, cutting red onto milky white epidermis. After a time that seemed really long to Rolfo, the punished boy was reduced to a pile of whimpers, and he finally gave away the name of his other provider, a guy from sector 3 called Hanker. Rolfo nodded to the others, signifying that he had what he wanted.

 Harvey was roughly dragged back into a chair, and Corneo’s first lieutenant sat on the table, in front of him.

 “-My, my, poor ragazzino[2].”

 He lifted the guy’s chin in a mockery of concern. As fucked up as Rolfo was at that time, he realized he still enjoyed that sadistic part of the job. After all, it wasn’t his fault if damn pusher didn’t respect the Don. He would not grant the guy a second chance, just to make sure Corneo doesn’t start to question his own loyalty.

 “-Just so you know, if we do sell you stuff coming from clean labs for Wall Market, that’s because..? Because..?”

 As the other did not answer, he punched him on the right cheek.

 “-Because we don’t need little low-lives like you to flood the streets with half-assed shit. How many ODs were caused by your dirty stuff, in the last past weeks? Junkies are scum and I am very well placed to know that, you wimp, worthless piece of shit, but dead customers ain’t spending any money on candy, you got that right, thick-head?”

 The guy started crying when Rolfo un-holstered one of his trademark guns.

 “-I’m sorry, tell the Don I’m sorry, Rolfo, guys, please, I didn’t realize, I couldn’t know, my brain doesn’t compute well, please, please!

-Well, it did compute well enough to try to double-cross us, right, Harvey?  

-I was just trying to …”

 A loud crack caused by a gun handle meeting his left cheek interrupted him mid-sentence. Harvey spit some blood, and stuttered again. Tears and snot matted his swollen face.

 “-I won’t do it again, I swear I won’t, lemme be, guys, I beg of you. I’m so sorry, so, so sorry.”

 Rolfo’s answer was as cold as his eyes.

 “-I don’t care.”

 The treacherous pusher did not even have the time to witness the barrel of Rolfo’s gun in front of his eyes, he was dead before he knew it.

 The black-haired assassin wiped some blood away from his face and put the gun back in his holster, retrieving the bullet jacket from under the table.

“-Let’s make sure everybody gets a chance to see Aki’s masterpiece.”

 They hung him by the feet in the alleyway where he used to be dealing. Everyone involved in business down sector 6 would get a sweet reminder of the fate of traitors. Rumours in the organized crime world ran quicker than anything else, within two days, everyone would know Don Corneo’s wolves were still as acute as ever.      

 

[1] Baby boy

[2] Little boy


	4. Chapter 4

**-Chapter IV-**

 

“-Twenty-four pounds? Can you believe this, Rolfo? Just how long has that Hanker guy been providing that little bastard in _my_ sector 6?

-I don’t know, Capo. Never heard anything about someone named Hanker beforehand.”

 The amount of drug Rolfo and his guys had found in one of the deceased pusher hideouts was almost too much to conceive.

 “-You think it’s good stuff, Boss?

-Well that would be a waste not to check before burning so much candy. Call the lab. Have this crap tested. We won’t sell anything shitty, got that?

-Understood.”

 Rolfo understood indeed, and it hit a little too close to home for his liking. One of Corneo’s guys died of an OD two years before, and the very thought darkened the bodyguard’s stormy blue eyes.

 It was in their lounge, an evening like so many others, bottles everywhere and almost every guy had one chick on each knee. Rolfo was smoking and laughing in delight as a young brunette made her way to his zipper, and sucked him dry as if nobody was there. He was high as a kite, drugs flooding inside his veins. He had been working for the Don for five years, and it seemed to him the party never ended in his benefactor’s mansion. His first taste of candy was when he started working for Corneo. Drugs were too expensive for a jackass such as Rolfo before he had a real job, and curiosity got the best of him almost as soon as he entered the Don’s little family. At that time, he was still a nobody, only one of Corneo’s boys, a starved mutt, hungry for sex, money and power, yet not in that particular order.

 He didn’t give anything any second thought.

 There had been a shortage in merchandise the week before, and the Boss had made some minor arrangement with a scientist from Junon to provide his customers. It was a dangerous way of getting dubious supplies, and the road between Junon and Sector 6 was risky, but Corneo had little choice. He had to provide his customers to keep business running.

 The amount of drug-induced incidents in Sector 6 the week after had remained unequalled since that day.

 Rolfo had had a fix at about 10 PM, and since then he was lying on a comfy sofa with two girls to take care of him. One decided to leave him to her colleague since the guy showed no interest in her whatsoever, right after she had refused to blow him on the spot. The other one, the one with the dark brown locks, was much more yielding. And oh, how he liked submissive chicks. She went down on him without further ado, and he cursed loudly while sinking even deeper in the fluffy cushions of the couch, a lit cigarette hanging at the corner of his mouth, his right hand maintaining her head on his dick.

 He heard Melvin giggling as he was getting undone.

 “-You’re such a dirty slut, man. You don’t even treat them nice, and yet they can’t take their eyes off of you.

-Fuck you, dude, or d’you want to come suck me?”

 The black-haired boy didn’t turn his head to look at his best friend, who let out an exaggerated disgusted howl.

 “-Eeeeew, I’ll pass. You’re not my type, even with those long dark curls of yours.”

 Truth was, the girls liked Melvin a lot too. He looked and behaved like a life size teddy bear, and as the other guys were having their way with random chicks, he usually went for a massage or remained alone. Rolfo kept telling him he was too sweet for that place, but he enjoyed having him around. The black-haired boy laughed along with his fair-haired giant friend, before biting back a moan as the little lady between his thighs tried to get his whole attention back, and succeeded. He closed his eyes as he overheard the familiar sound of a lighter on his left side, hinting that either Melvin was lighting a smoke, or preparing himself a shot. The girl was sweet and eager to please Rolfo, and his grip on her soft hair tightened each time she was doing really good. He dropped his nearly consumed cig into the nearest empty bottle.

 Melvin’s observation was true: Rolfo did treat girls like dump, but his indigo eyes, his good looks and, for those who already knew him, some of his skills in bed were his best allies to make female friends. As long as they were as rough and clever as he thought he was, a few girls even managed to get him wrapped around their finger, and around those ones, he even tended to become charming. As time passed, he started to grow into something more interesting than an obnoxious junkie from the slums, at least when he wasn’t high, that is.

 Rolfo dozed off after a very liberating orgasm, a thrill overload combined to too many different substances flowing in his blood, falling asleep on the couch with the girl wrapped in his arms. If she wanted to go away sometime, so much for her. His grip on her was iron.

In the morning, he woke up first, as it was already customary at the time. Unfolding his arms, he freed his dark haired willing prisoner, earning a slight groan from her sleepy form. He rose to his feet, tried to get his clothes a little less crumpled, and smiled as he watched the others passed out in various ridiculous postures.

His smile faded the instant his eyes fell on Melvin. He was hung-over, but he rushed to his best friend’s side. The guy’s skin was almost grey, and he slapped him vigorously.

 “-Melvin, fuck, wake up!”

 Rolfo withdrew his hand as if he just got burnt. Blood had been running from his friend’s lips, and his skin was cold as ice. He shakily searched for a pulse on the blonde guy’s throat, and found none.

 “-Shit. Shit. Shit, Melvin, you can’t do that to us. You can’t fucking die on me.”

 He somehow managed to get a hold on himself, in spite of his nauseous state, and set his thoughts in order.

  _Get a doctor. Try to make him come back to his senses in the meantime._

 He woke Manolo up with a firm kick on his butt.

 “-Manolo! Manolo. Wake up. Go get a phone. Call a medic. Melvin’s no good. No good at all.”

The middle-aged man, albeit grumpy, complied to Rolfo’s aggravated plea without complaining. But he had seen shit, and a single look on Melvin’s state made him understand it was already too late. As soon as the phone call was over, he came to check for sure, and his face dropped.

 He laid a gentle hand on Rolfo’s shoulder.

 “-E' morto, carino, è morto[1].”

 Hearing Manolo talk to him in such a weary tone and in their native tongue struck Rolfo like lightning. He brought both his hands to cover his mouth, and shut his eyes tight when realization hit him. He couldn’t believe this was happening. Melvin was his brother. His best friend. And he had just lost him while he was getting off and stoned. He could not, he would not believe that. Melvin couldn’t die. Someone up there must have read a notice wrong. He was devastated.

 Yet, his first thought had been not to cry in front of the others.

 That year, Rolfo’s tendency to self destruction went astray. It grew worse than it had ever been before. It was everyone’s guess that he wouldn’t live past the year, and his overall looks decayed a little more every week. However, one day, he requested a meeting with the Don in his office.

 Corneo put his cigar down as Rolfo entered the room, and examined his lapdog with cold scrutiny. His eyes were unreadable. Rolfo started to talk. His whole appearance was a mess. He was skinny as fuck, his hair was dirty, his complexion sallow and sickly. But the statement was clear, loud. The young man’s demeanour was the epitome of cool composure.    

“-Capo, I want to quit candy.”

          

[1] He’s dead, sweetness, he’s dead.


	5. Chapter 5

**-Chapter V-**

 

And thus, Rolfo had been clean for more than a year. Withdrawal had been a nightmare, but the picture of Melvin’s blemish skin and bloody lips was carved in the back of Rolfo’s skull. He didn’t want to become such a dreadful corpse. He had seen dead people before, more than his share, but death definitely didn’t look good on his best friend. Luckily for Rolfo, his strong physical constitution allowed him to quickly get back to almost his ideal weight, even thought he tended to remain thinner than he used to be.

 Trouble was, now that things had settled down a little, that if Rolfo liked to brag about how brilliant he was, he was indeed clever, and without the glittery fog of drugs blurring his thoughts, he gradually realized real life in Wall Market wasn’t half as heavenly as his ever comatose mind made him believe it was.

 He started questioning himself about his life choices.

 The hand of the Don on his shoulder snapped him out of his reverie and brought him back to present time.

 “-We must find that Hanker son of a bitch, boy.

-Sure thing, Capo. Andrej and Sailor are gathering information. I’ll bring you his head on a plate.”

 Because things were becoming _personal_. Rolfo would make sure nobody was ever granted a chance to provide the same shit that had killed his mate.

 The sun had already set behind the crumpled wall that circled sector 6. Corneo lit a cigar and brought two large hands covered in gaudy rings to Rolfo’s cheeks.

 “-Good boy. Very good. Now do me a favour, will you? Do as I said this morning. Go to the inn and have fun. You look worn out. Come back as soon as you know where the dickhead is.”

 The bodyguard looked down at his own hands, wearing equally garish jewellery, and felt a wave of repugnance sliding through his spine.

 “-That’ll do me good.

-No wonder. Don’t overdo it, my boy. I know you’re top of the heap.”

 Rolfo saluted politely and left, heading for the Honeybee Inn. He hoped Livia would be there. Even if she would want to shag him after what happened last night and he wasn’t really in the mood for sex, at least affection wouldn’t feel too faked. However, he made a small detour to buy some new clothes, as he had planned to do that morning. He chose a dark-purple shirt and an anthracite three pieces suit. He left the shirt out of his pants and did not bother buttoning the waistcoat, but still, he thought he looked quite good. He stuffed all of his rubbish rings in the left pocket of his pants.

 Milan and Quentin were guarding the door at the Inn that day, and made good fun of his new outfit.

 “-Oh my, Rolfo, are we getting married?

-Screw you, ragazzi[1], I really don’t have the stomach for your shit tonight.

-Gods, someone’s got to get laid.”

 Rolfo elbowed both of the giggling guys while passing between them, and entered the Inn by the rear door. A little dark skinned tornado almost pushed him back outside, launching herself against him.

 “-Lolo-micio[2]!!!”

 He lifted the little girl in his arms like a precious treasure.

 “-Cherubina[3] mia.”

 He chastely kissed her on the lips. She was one of the workers’ daughter, a beautiful black goddess named Yolanda. If some of the hostesses had kids, Yolanda was the only one who brought her little Dawa to work. She was too afraid the girl’s father would come and try to kidnap her while she was working, and she trusted Corneo’s bouncers enough to protect her baby. She locked her in the dressing rooms everyday and almost everyone took care of the kid, making sure she didn’t learn what was happening behind closed doors, well, except for Aki, who seemed too socially awkward to even get geographically close to her.

 The little bunch of curls was six years old, and she had grown a crush on Rolfo as soon as she met him. Coming from a large family, the black-haired man had many siblings and was accustomed to having kids around. However, he didn’t feel quite at ease the first time he met a little girl in the most praised brothel of the slums. A small hand on his collar and a smile were all it took to reveal a fatherly instinct he didn’t know he possessed. He immediately agreed to her request of becoming her husband when she was grown.

 Dawa pouted as she cuddled in his arms and toyed with his hair.

 “-They’re all working. Nobody wants to play with me.”

 Rolfo was almost glad everyone was busy.

“-My my, poverina[4], you’re lucky I’m here, aren’t you?

-Will you make a plane for me, Micio?

-A plane? But how will you fly under the pizza, uh?”

 She frowned in intense concentration.

“-I know! You’ll take me outside, okay?

-Sure.”

 A little lie didn’t hurt much, after all. He sat on the shabby carpet in spite of wearing a new suit. He reached for an ageless building bucket Sailor had found for her god knows where, and started screwing pieces of metal together.

 “-Are those wings?

-Why yes, we’ll need some, don’t you think?

-And wheels too?

-I’ve never seen any plane with legs, so, yeah, better give it some wheels, vero[5], cherubina?

-But it’s supposed to fly, no to roll.

-It can’t run on its belly to take-off.”

 A tiny finger reached small lips in incomprehension.

 “-Uh?

-I’ll show you.”

 They were busy pretending to test the plane’s aerodynamics when Lucia came back from one of the rooms. She leaned against the wall to watch Rolfo and Dawa playing.

 “-What a moving scene, Lolo-micio.

-Oh, hi, gattina.”

 She was the one from whom he gained the Lolo-micio sobriquet. She tricked Dawa into believing it was Rolfo’s real name, and the little girl liked it so much that he never bothered to tell her it was not. Everyone at the Inn played along since then, and he officially became Lolo-micio between the walls of the brothel. Lucia lit a cigarette.

 “-They’re all fucking weird, tonight, I swear, I couldn’t wait for the end of my shift. What a drag.”

 She inhaled the smoke.

 “-I bet you came to see Livia, right?”

 There were rumours among the girls who were discussing whether he and Olivia were in love, and everybody did tease about the date of their supposed wedding. Rolfo usually simply answered them he was already engaged to Yolanda’s daughter, so he couldn’t get married. He felt that nobody believed this version of the story.

 “-Ha, I’m too busy creating Dawa’s first shipping company.”

 Lucia ignored his answer and started to remove her make-up.

 “-She should be back in fifteen minutes.

-You’re not leaving, are you, Micio?”

 He faked a smile.

 “-Of course not, zuccherina[6].”

 The question was how he could stay with the kid without being regarded as a fag. If he had changed a lot lately, he couldn’t make it too obvious. Trust down in Wall Market was so hard to gain that he couldn’t afford losing it over a simple change of heart. _Politics, politics_ , he thought to himself.

 He was deep in thoughts, making the plane roll between Dawa and him whereas she wasn’t even paying attention anymore. A small hand stroked the row of braids in his hair.

 “-You gotta ask mommy to redo them, you’re looking messy, Lolo-micio.”

 He nodded and smiled again.

 “-Am I still beautiful enough to be your marito[7]?

-Of course!”

 She hugged him, hardly tall enough to reach his neck even though he was sitting and she was on her feet. A loud click rang in the small room, and Lucia giggled, a camera in hand.

 “-I’m sorry, you two looked so cute I couldn’t help myself.

-You little…”

 Rolfo’s glare made Lucia laugh even louder, and Olivia entered the room right on time to spot her more-or-less lover right in the arms of another girl for the second time that day. She grinned.

 “-Uh oh, I hope I’m not interrupting something.”

 Rolfo shrugged with a cryptic smile on his lips.    

 

[1] Boys

[2] Pussycat (childish)

[3] Cherub

[4] Poor little one

[5] Right ?

[6] Lit. « little piece of sugar »

[7] Husband


	6. Chapter 6

**-Chapter VI-**

  

Olivia’s fingers ran casually in Rolfo’s dark locks as he sat between her feet on the floor, in front of the large sofa which ornated the girls’ changing room. Lucia had left for home. Dawa requested a boat after the plane, and Livia was all too happy to thrive on the fact that the Don had ordered Rolfo to spend some time at the Inn. Thanks to this, she could leave her colleagues take care of the customers. After all, one of the chicks had to entertain Corneo’s lieutenant. And she would be delighted to be that chick, even though it seemed the bodyguard had no intention of visiting one of the bedrooms anytime soon. Not that Olivia really minded. That would give her a well deserved break.

Rolfo never asked her to stay with him in the locker room that night, yet there seemed to be a silent agreement between the two of them, and none of the other girls would have tried to bed him unless explicitly asked to do so. Somehow, over the years, Olivia had marked her territory over his sun-kissed skin, and even though he never agreed to becoming her property, he did nothing to prevent himself from being claimed as her own.

 He wondered if she would make the first move and ask him to go upstairs, where the larger rooms were, but she remained silent, contemplating his awkward progression in the building of a misshapen boat.

 “-Eeeh, I wonder if it’s gonna be able to float one day, cherubina.”

 He heard a muffled laugh behind his back.

 “-You’re simply better at building planes, no need to be ashamed, cucciolo.”

 Dawa was staring at the crippled piece of art, and burst out laughing.

 “-It looks like a monster. It’s a bit scary, Micio.”

 He made a little helpless sound.

 “-I tried my best. But you should beware, maybe it’s just as scary as it looks!”

 He smiled mischievously and grabbed the boat from the kid’s hands, started growling and pretended to be attacked by said monster-boat, rolling backwards on the rug. Dawa couldn’t stop laughing.

 They kept playing for a while before Olivia gently pointed out that the little girl was yawning a lot.

 “-You’d be a terrible baby-sitter, you know that, sweetie?”

Rolfo had moved up to lounge on the couch next to Olivia, and he was tickling Dawa as she sat on his lap, struggling hard not to fall asleep.

 “-Hm? Why so? Dawa, aren’t you having fun?”

 A sweet giggle was the only answer.

 “-Ah, see? She likes it.

-Maybe, but what good caretaker would leave a tired 6 years old little girl up at 11 PM?

-Ohimè[1], is it so late already? You tired, bambina[2]?

-No! I wanna play, I wanna play!”

 Olivia tried to be persuasive.

 “-If your mother finds out…

-She’s always working, anyway. She doesn’t care about me.”

 Rolfo and Olivia exchanged an uneasy look. The young man figured out that maybe she would listen to him.

 “-Hey, look. Your mamma gotta lots of work, you know. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t care. See? I have lots of work too, yet we played today, right? Grown-ups have stuff to do, that’s just how things are. Besides, you’ll be too tired to play tomorrow if you don’t go to bed now.

-But I don’t wanna go to bed, Lolo. I want to play with you.

-I’ll play with you as much as you want next time, if you behave and get some sleep.”

 She started to whine, but he rose to his feet with her in his arms as Olivia unfolded the panel behind which her bed was hidden from the light bulbs surrounding the mirrors. He let Olivia undress her and put her pyjamas on while he went outside to smoke. The kid requested a goodnight kiss when he came back, and she asked if the two of them were going to bed, too. Olivia answered before Rolfo got a chance to open his mouth.

 “-Don’t worry. I’ll take Lolo to bed as soon as your mother comes back.”

 He was taken aback by how sure of herself she sounded, that made him laugh out loud, but it pleased him somehow. As his eyes met Livia’s, he winked in connivance. They both kissed Dawa and left her to sleep, settling back in the couch. After a few whimpers and some indignant protests, the little girl finally drowsed off.

 “-Say, you look stunning in that new suit of yours, carino.

-I’m glad you like it.

-Changing styles?

-I grew tired of leopard prints.

-Oh no, tell me you still have your tiger patterned boxers.

-I wouldn’t deprive you from your favourite kink, now, would I?”

 They laughed discreetly at their private joke. They didn’t have to wait for Yolanda to return, since the little girl was accustomed to being alone in the dressing room, as the hostesses often had no choice but to leave her there when there were too many customers. But that night, somehow, Olivia and Rolfo felt just comfortable together, with the calm breathing of the little one sleeping in the background. They let a serene silence fall between them. Neither of them felt the need to rush to a bedroom. Olivia rested her head on Rolfo’s lap, and intertwined her fingers with his. He let his body relax as his thoughts went rogue once again.

 No wonder Corneo called him unfocused lately.

 Yolanda wasn’t long to come back, greeting Rolfo and Olivia with a little wave of her hand, and complaining about her last customer, an old piece of junk, in her own words. She immediately went to check on Dawa, laughed and thanked her babysitters of fortune as she caught sight of the discarded plane and boat on the floor.

 “-I can see she put Micio in good use. I hope she didn’t bother you too much.”

 He gestured dismissively, his voice sounded drained.

 “-No, not at all. Even if I probably created the new Titanic for your daughter tonight. Remind me to never try building a boat again, will ya?”

 Olivia discreetly pointed at the poor twisted thing on the floor and whispered:

 “-I assure you, it’s supposed to be a boat.”

 Both girls tried to muffle their laughter, and Rolfo pretended to be offended but finally laughed along. Olivia got up and held her hand out. The bodyguard caught it and followed.

 “-Have a good night, Yo. You still working, tonite?

-Ha, yes. Nightshift for me. Will you take the blue room?”

 Rolfo shrugged. He didn’t care.

 “-Va bene[3].

-Fine then, I’ll tag it taken for the night. Have fun, lovebirds.”

 They left for the blue room, last one to the right, upstairs. Rococo surroundings and mirrors on the ceiling. Livia and Rolfo had already started kissing before reaching the door. They stumbled onto the bed as soon as they had pushed the lock, and had plain old vanilla sex right where they had landed. She took his clothes off as quickly as she could, and he did the same for her. They kissed a lot and did not even try to shift positions. Sex was graceless, amateurish, not at all matching their mutual skills, and they didn’t give a damn. They didn’t even last the mandatory fifteen minutes usually granted for a customer’s trick.

 As she was resting her head on his stomach and lazily tracing patterns over his chest after their messy little ride, Rolfo fell asleep under her ministrations. Olivia smiled as she witnessed him dozing off like a tired puppy, and pulled the covers over them before laying a kiss on his temple.

 She wondered when exactly she had started to recognize the very instant he drifted from consciousness to sleep with such accuracy.

 

 

[1] Interj. « Oh dear ! »

[2] Baby girl

[3] Allright


	7. Chapter 7

**-Chapter VII-**

 

Two days later, the atmosphere in the Don’s office was all but relaxed. All of the men save those guarding the Honeybee’s door were gathered in the smoke-filled room. Corneo was infuriated. His fist hit the wooden desk hard.

 “-Are you telling me that Finn scum is intending to smuggle his shit down Wall Market?”

 Rolfo never lost his composure.

 “-Apparently. That Hanker dude isn’t officially related to Finn’s family but both Andrej and Aki learned that they provided Hanker with raw materials. A clever and discreet way to covet sector 6 customers without getting formally involved on our grounds, in short.”

 Andrej and Aki confirmed with a nod. The Don was chewing on his cigar and looked enraged. Jake spoke nevertheless:

 “-Means we cannot openly get rid of that guy without triggering a war between our gangs. Nobody will ever believe we didn’t know Hanker was related to Finn, even though they were only partners sub rosa. That lie won’t stay the distance.

-I’m not making any negotiating with that Finn douchebag. He believes he’s a godfather of some sort but he’s nothing more than a cornered rabid dog and an ambitious greedy psycho. Such men cannot see sense.”

 Finn was the sector 3 counterpart of Don Corneo, and he was famous indeed for being disloyal and deceitful, even according to Don Corneo’s crew remarkably low standards. Triggering a gang war, on the other hand, meant having the Shinra getting involved under the plate, and that could not be good. None of the options seemed appropriate to solve their dilemma. Rolfo considered his Boss’ last intervention and took a decision.

 “-I’ll dispose of Hanker. Alone.”

 Every eye in the room locked on him. He went on with his explanation.

 “-I’m your number one hitman, Capo. And we have to keep a low profile. I will go there by myself, and not get spotted. I’ll take good care of him the old way. He will become an unfortunate victim of a random killer. Insomma[1], an isolated shooter, no family implicated, no gang war. End of story.”

 Sailor looked awfully tense.

 “-Dude, you gonna get your ass shot. And they will find another Hanker.

-That will at least earn us some time. Do you have any better idea?”

 They all remained silent. The newest guy, a tall redhead called Jesus, lifted his hand as if he were going to talk but then changed his mind. Corneo’s stare on his first lieutenant was piercing. He didn’t want to risk losing his best shot, yet he felt he hadn’t much of a choice. The handsome southern guy was shrewd, maybe even a little too much to be trusted, lately. He had to keep a firm eye on Rolfo.

 “-Do we know the exact location of the hole where that wretch hides his rat-ass?”

 Aki nodded again.

 “-The son of a bitch wasn’t easy to spot, but we managed to, nevertheless. He’s a little too much of a show-off for business, let alone for his own sake.”

 That was a funny thing to hear in Corneo’s mansion, however none of the guys took the bait. Tension was almost visible. Corneo blew out the smoke of his cigar as he seemed to have reached a decision.

 “-Everyone get out. Rolfo, you stay here.”

 All of the men complied without further ado. They all believed Rolfo was getting chided for being too reckless.

 As the right-hand man and the Boss remained alone in the room, an unsettling silence rose. The Don took his time, circling around Rolfo who didn’t show any obvious sign of nervousness. The old man finally went back to sit in the luxurious chair of his desk, coughed a little, and lit up another cigar.

 “-You do realize, my boy, that a smart brain, big balls and a brand new fancy outfit are not enough to take me over, right?”

 That was a direct accusation of disobedience. Rolfo didn’t flinch.

 “-I’m just trying to do my job right, Capo. I do not intend to take you over.  

-You think you’re too good for this turf, don’t you, Rolfo?”

 The bodyguard almost lost his composure that time, but managed to keep a straight face. He was caught off guard as he realized how that old perv could sometimes be a perceptive asshole. The Don went on speaking.

 “-Be careful, my little wolf. Don’t let your fangs grow too long, for soon you won’t be able to feed yourself anymore and you will starve in your unmatched pristine handsomeness. Remember who made you. I won’t let you down. You’re a raw diamond, Rolfo. That would be a shame to fuck you up with a clumsy carving, don’t you agree?”

 The young man was straight as a board.

 “-I already told you I do not bite the hand that feeds me.”

 Emerald eyes met cobalt ones. None of the men averted his gaze. Corneo rose just when Rolfo thought he had died on the spot, and spoke in an unusually calm tone.

 “-Give it your best shot, boy. And don’t get yourself killed. No freestyle. I want to hear your plan. I want to know when, where, and how before you even think about setting one foot out of sector 6, _capito **[2]**_?”

 Rolfo started to wonder if the Don planned on plainly executing him during his little expedition. He’d have to be extra cautious. He repeated in acknowledgement:

 “-Capito, Boss. You will be informed.”

 

[1] In short

[2] Understood


	8. Chapter 8

**-Chapter VIII-**

 

_November._

Sector 3 wasn’t creepy the way sector 6 was, but the very thought wasn’t any comforting to Rolfo. He was on a foreign territory, and he had to watch his every move. Maybe he’d even have to watch his back against Corneo’s possible treachery. He found Hanker’s place quite easily indeed, and revealed his presence after he had made sure the guy was alone. He was a blonde, muscular, healthy-looking bearded young man. Hanker fumbled in a cupboard to retrieve his gun as soon as he saw Rolfo, as if he wasn’t used to being in someone’s firing line. Rolfo hadn’t even reached for his guns yet, and he didn’t try to learn anything about his business since he didn’t want to give hints on his whereabouts. He simply kept the fucker within his sight. The other was so terrified Rolfo was sure he’d shit himself. He _knew_ the blonde was too much of a coward to shoot.

 Unfortunately, fucking newbies surely can’t handle stress. The smuggler instantly shot in panic, and the bullet went straight through Rolfo’s right upper arm. Un-holstering a gun with his left hand, he bit his lower lip at the sharp burn consuming his flesh and strengthened his grip on the weapon. He hoped his artery was intact, blood flew down his arm but it was difficult to know how serious the injury actually was. The pain got Rolfo a little bit unnerved. He knew he had fucked up by being overconfident, yet he remained calm. His voice, however, sounded rougher than the usual.

 “-Learn to aim, stronzo[1].”

 Rolfo’s bullet drew an interesting new design on the wall behind Hanker’s head. He was checking if the guy was dead, which was almost certain since half of his head was gone, and gathering any evidence of his presence, when he heard an inelegant voice speaking in a very unusual pattern.

 “-Are we too late for your little party, yo?”

 Rolfo turned around and aimed at the unexpected visitor. Or rather, visitors. Two men wearing unmistakable, tailored black suits. Shinra Turks. What in the world were they doing down in sector 3? The bodyguard gritted his teeth.

 “-Cazzo[2].”

 He couldn’t handle two Turks wounded like he was. One gun wouldn’t suffice, and knowing from the guys’ reputation, he wasn’t even sure two would have been enough. Killing two of the Shinra’s dogs wasn’t a smart move anyway. His only option was to keep them at a distance and maybe stun them, just to gain enough time to flee. He was struck by a major fire spell, and cursed again, before the lean redhead Turk hit him with a disappointingly weak stroke. He couldn’t help but laugh.

 “-What are you, a girl in disguise?”

 This earned him an infuriated second strike in one row, critical this time, and a flock of insults, but nevertheless, it wasn’t that bad. Rolfo got what he wanted: he had had enough time to recite and cast a freeze spell on both his opponents. The stronger of the two men remained unaffected and hit the gangster badly, but Rolfo took his chance on escaping Hanker’s flat while the bigger man cured his frozen partner.

 He never thought he’d managed to lose them before he could reach Wall Market, but he finally outwitted his pursuers in the web of dubious alleyways that ran through the slums. He only stopped for ten seconds to gulp down a potion so that he wouldn’t faint before reaching the haven that sector 6 was to him.   

Jesus and Jake were startled as they spotted their leader stumbling towards the Honeybee Inn, his right arm leaking blood. He looked beaten-up, he obviously had been in serious trouble.

 “-Shit, man, come over here.”

 They helped him secure his balance. There was blood on his chin.

 “-We’re taking you inside, don’t worry. We got you.

-Wait, wait. Go tell the Boss the fucker’s dead.

-Sure. And I’ll call the doc.”

 Jake nodded to Jesus and the redhead ran away to inform the Don and get a medic.

 The two men made their way to the Inn’s backdoor, yet Rolfo grasped Jake’s arm firmly before he could open it.

 “-Tell me Dawa ain’t there, fra’[3].

-Yolanda is off, it’s okay, you’re gonna be okay, right, dude? Who did this to you? Hanker?”

 Jake put Rolfo down on the couch, uncaring about his mate’s blood staining the faded green fabric. Luckily, the girls were busy in the bedrooms. Rolfo coughed and tried to reach his cigs in his breast-pocket. The other guy lit one for him and brought the stick to his lips. Rolfo took a long drag of smoke.

 “-He shot me once. But I got spotted by the Turks. Fuckers were a pain to get rid off.

-The Turks? You mean Shinra’s assassins? What in the world did they want with Hanker?

-I’m afraid I missed my chance to socialize, sorry.”

 Rolfo was still making stupid jokes, even though he was in a critical state. Did the guy even have the ability to lose his self-control? Jake’s face was an open book of concern. The weariness made Rolfo’s little foreign accent stand out more than the usual, or maybe it was just that Jake had never paid any attention to it before. He didn’t know anymore. Rolfo forced a smile to comfort his worried partner.

 “-Hey. I’ve seen shit, y’know. I’ll survive.”

 Oh well, at least he hoped he would. As Jake stroked his left shoulder and gave him another potion, the black-haired man lost consciousness.  

 Rolfo woke up with a start. His eyes snapped open. He was hovering over a young couple in a king-size bed. His vision was blurry, and all he could distinguish was a hand the colour of dark chocolate resting on a honeyed chest. His mind was foggy and he felt sick.

  _Bravo, you’re a ghost. And a voyeur, at that. Talk about levelling up._

 The little gears in Rolfo’s sedated head slowly started to get into motion, and he realized little by little that he was at the Honeybee Inn, in the blue room, and that the couple he saw was only the reflection of Livia and him in the ceiling mirrors. He had no grasp of time. Since the room had no windows, it was hard to tell anyway. The permanent dim light of the bedpost lamps were the only sun he had. He shifted his position a little and was greeted by a tight hug that instantly reminded him his body was a giant contusion. He mentally placed a bet on a few cracked ribs too.

 “-Aouch. Hey.

-You’re still alive, oh my god, you’re finally awake. I was so worried.

-I’m as good as new, cara mia.”

 She kissed his bruised lips, his black eye, and all of his face in a sense of urgency. He had to calm her down a little.

 “-How long you been here?

-Since last night. They told me you were up here when I arrived to take my shift. I almost had to whack the Don with my handbag to be granted a night off and to get a chance to look after you.”

 He chortled at the idea but his laughter died quickly. It hurt like a bitch.  

 “-You shouldn’t hit elderly men, y’know. How long I been out?

-Two days. The doctor said you were lucky to make it alive, you jackass.

-Why hello, I’m glad to see you, and I love you too.”

 She couldn’t repress a smile at his teasing.

 “-Get some rest, will you? I’ll get you something to eat.

-Where’s my phone?”

 She didn’t answer but eyed the blood-stained jacket hanging on a rack in the corner of the room. He gave her the kicked puppy look, she rolled her eyes and retrieved it for him. He was dialling some number and she was about to take her leave, when she rushed back and propelled herself on the bed, holding him for dear life, half-crying.

 “-I thought I would never get a chance to tell you…”

 His finger was already on her beautiful lips before she could say the frightening words.

 “-Ssh. You got scared, that’s it. I’m still alive.”

 She leaned back a little to look into his eyes.  

 “-If you ever perform that kind of stunt again…

-I’ll ask for your hand and we’ll settle for Neverland, deal?”

 Olivia’s mouth remained agape for two seconds. Then she slapped him, pulled at his hair and kissed him roughly, turned on by the coppery taste of blood coming from his split lip. Rolfo watched her leave the room to get him food with a bemused look on his marred features, his left hand dreamily brushing his mistreated mouth.

 Rolfo’s forsaken PHS glowed a weak blue light in a fold of the sheets as Corneo’s irascible voice shouted in annoyance through the earpiece.

 

[1] Piece of shit

[2] Lit. dick. Interj. shit or fuck.

[3] Bro


	9. Chapter 9

**-Chapter IX-**

No, the Don hadn’t missed a piece of the moving little love confession he just had with Olivia, and yes, he was really mad. At them both.

“-How could such an amateur, a fucking rookie almost defeat the best of my men? You reckless little jerk, how could you mess things up so badly? You were almost dead when the guys retrieved your sorry ass at the Inn! I told you to be careful, you shit bag!”

 It was useless for Rolfo to try to defend himself. First because his boss was right on one thing: he had messed up big time. Second because he knew how the Don was when he was mad at someone, and Corneo was beyond reasoning at that point. However, the Don’s apparent genuine concern for his safety, albeit gruff, puzzled him.

 “-I’m sorry, Boss. It’s my fault.

-You bet it’s your fault. Tell me at least nobody saw you, dumbass.”

 The mobster’s already numb head started to throb. Jake hadn’t snitched on him, and that was a comforting thought. But it didn’t make his current precarious situation any better.

 "-Actually I…

-What? What?

-Shinra Turks. They attacked me right after I had disposed of Hanker. I have no idea why they were there in the first place, Capo.

-Turks? What the … Did they know who you are?

-How could they? I never confronted any of them before, Boss.

-Hm. You’d better be right.”

 Corneo pondered. Truly enough, since he conducted regular business with Shinra labs, he was known amongst the Turks, but there was no reason one of his lackeys who never left the slums should be identified at first sight. Plus, he couldn’t afford getting rid of Rolfo, he needed his skills too much. _For now_.

 “-Did they track you?

-I managed to lose them.

-Good. We must find out what the Turks could possibly want from a sector 3 smuggler first thing. Doc told me you’re bed-ridden?

-You know I’m available if you need me, Capo.”

 Blatant lie. Rolfo wasn’t even sure he could stand without someone to support him.

 “-No. Get yourself back into shape. Tell the guys to investigate. I just need you to coordinate your crew for now. I’ll decide of your fate later. Ah, Rolfo?

-Yes, Capo?

-Tell your little guard-hound _fidanzata_[1] that if she wants to keep her job, she’d better behave and be a good girl.”

 The bodyguard swallowed hard at the Don’s choice of words.

 “-Understood.”

 Rolfo hung up and let himself fall flat on his back on the blue satin pillows. Things were spinning out of control. His whole body hurt like shit. He feared he was going to get taken out. He suddenly remembered he totally forgot to have the produce they took in Harvey’s hideout analyzed by the lab. He called Aki.

 “-Hey, Western Delicacy.

-Rolfo-san. You doing better?

-I’m _totally_ fine, grazie[2], dude. Say, would you grant me a favor?”

 The phone call didn’t last one minute. The Wute wasn’t much of a talker. Then he called Andrej, his kind of second-in-command, to ensure they would set an investigation on the Shinra hounds’ whereabouts in the slums.

 A light knock on the door, and Olivia was back with a little wooden box. Ramen noodles. She cautiously put it on his lap as he was closing the lid of his PHS.

 “-Thanks, Livia.”

 He hesitated before taking the chopsticks in hand.

 “-Say, cara mia, I don’t remember you ever taking care of me like that last time I got shot.

-Figures. That was a long time ago.”

 Yes indeed, it had been more than two years ago. Olivia carried on.

 "-You were still an asshole, at that time.”

 He glared at her, but couldn’t prove her wrong. He started eating in silence.

 The first time they met, she was the Inn’s latest new girl, and Corneo’s men always wanted to get a bite of fresh meat. Rolfo was no exception, and since he had a reputation of being trigger-happy and ruthless, the guys often let him go first. He hardly even talked to her while in the room, simply giving her orders on what to do, or on which position she should take. She ended up in tears, and he got mad at her for being a cry-baby. She mentally labelled him a motherfucker that very night.

 The second time, she had had time to brace herself and build a shell against men of his kind. She granted him minimum attention, mechanically doing anything he requested, but treating him in ways far better than he had ever experienced, let alone imagined coming from her. It got him simultaneously upset and aroused like never before.

 Rolfo found himself coming back for more.

 After a few months, she had learn how to pull his levers, she knew when to be submissive and when to be a little bitch. It was a dangerous game to play, but against all odds, it ended up making Rolfo more compliant. Becoming one of Corneo’s men’s favourite hooker ensured Olivia a relatively good position amongst all the chicks in the brothel. A resourceful girl like her quickly got a grasp on the way things worked in sector 6, and she didn’t mind using the handsome bastard for her own benefit. Yet, even though he fucked her on a regular basis, Rolfo still wouldn’t talk to her.

 One night, however, when he arrived at the Inn, he was noticeably high, and his breath smelled of cheap rice wine. Rolfo was wearing a red dragon-patterned shirt, dark shades, and seemed in a pretty good mood, giggling pointlessly at Lucia’s stupid jokes. Olivia rolled her eyes in disgust when she saw him in the backrooms, yet she already knew he’d request some private time with her. Becoming his fave also had its downsides, Rolfo did love sex, and he came to the Inn often. He took his sunglasses off and winked at her as soon as he saw her, before silently leading her to a bedroom, resting his arm over her shoulders.

 In spite of herself, Olivia realized she was getting tired of their mute fuck-and-flee routine. Once in the Queen’s room, she decided to go for broke and gave a tug at his sleeve.

 “-Say, what’s with that shirt?”

 He had already lit a spliff.

 “-What about it?

-Take it off. It doesn’t suit you at all. Did you steal it from Aki or something?”

 His first move was to hit her for not showing enough respect. He had never been physically violent with her before, but his sudden angered move frightened her nevertheless. Olivia met his icy gaze, mentally bracing herself, and closed her eyes.

 Nothing happened.

 When Olivia dared to risk a glance, Rolfo had lowered his hand and was taking a puff of his reefer. His eyes were locked on her face, as if he was debating whether he should smack her or not. She wanted to touch him to ease the tension, but she was far too scared to try and reach for his arm.

 In fact, on a second thought, Rolfo had come to the conclusion that maybe things could become interesting between Olivia and him. Probably because he had smoked a lot of weed and his short temper had long ago dissolved into heavy smoky swirls, and because it was actually the first time she was bold enough to tease him. Cute chick had guts. He played along.

 “-Giving me orders, now, bambolina[3]?

-I’m nobody’s doll.”

 He sat down on the bed and eyed her quizzically while smoking.

 “-Mi capisci quando parlo[4]?”

 She nodded.

 “-If you speak slowly. I can’t talk, though.”

 He didn’t answer immediately, leaning against the bed post and inhaling odorous smoke. When Rolfo exhaled, he had made up his mind. He decided to let her in. Maybe opening up a little bit to Olivia wouldn’t be so bad, after all. For the first time in ten months they’ve known each other, the provocative smile he gave her was actually sincere.

 “-Well if you don’t like my shirt, come take it off yourself.”

 

[1] Fiancée

[2] Thank you

[3] Little doll

[4] Do you understand me when I talk ?


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I managed to update. I have tons of work.
> 
> Warning : Slight smut at the end.

**-Chapter X-**

 

_Convalescence, day 5._

Being sidetracked and purposely left in limbo concerning his fate in the gang stressed Rolfo like he never thought it would. Plus he was stuck in the blue room, with Olivia coming to feed him from time to time when she wasn’t busy working. Rolfo started to think she worked far too much for her own good. Some of the other girls came to check on him too, but they never stayed for long. As for the guys, they were all too awkward with staying in a brothel room with their convalescent, half-naked leader. They only passed by to give him some news about their investigations.

 And they hadn’t unearthed anything fancy, at that.

 Three days only after coming back to his senses, Rolfo painfully left the bed and struggled to get himself clean in the tremendous shower of the room. Not only did it take him ages, but also he ruined his bandages, and he remembered too late his new shirt had been upgraded with a splendid bullet hole and he had no other clothes at the Inn. Anyway, he couldn’t spot the bloody piece of fabric anywhere in the room. Olivia surely had trashed it. He sighed. Either he was stuck in there, or condemned to run around Wall Market half naked with a Neanderthal-like beard. He sighed again, and finally sat back on the edge of the bed. He was getting hungry. It was probably out of boredom. He fell backwards on the bed, and watched his reflection in the ceiling. Rolfo almost failed to recognize himself in the weathered bearded man above him. He was astounded by how much he looked like his father.

 Olivia arrived more than one hour later with some food supplies. He was playing a game on his phone, since he needed something to take his mind off business. He wasn’t in the mood for the low quality porn that the only channel available in the Inn permanently broadcasted. The young woman wasn’t wearing her uniform.

 “-Hey, sweetie. Dinner time.”

 He gave her the most relieved smile.

 “-Hey. You’re off tonight? Great! I was feeling so lonely, bambolina.”

 He patted the bed next to him and Olivia sat down, only to chastise him.

“-Being flirty won’t get you anywhere.”

 She frowned when she noticed the state of the gauze around his right arm and chest.

 “-What in the worl… Rolfo.”

  _Hu ho_ , she had called him by his name, it couldn’t be good.

 “-Doc told you to avoid moving from the bed. I guess that counted for “don’t stick any water on your wounds” and “don’t ruin everything that could help cure your sorry ass” too. You have lost _a lot_ of blood, you know.

-I _had_ to clean myself up, I can’t remain here forever, cara mia. I’m losing my mind. I’d rather at least go downstairs to chat with the girls.”

 She rolled her eyes, scooted closer to him and started to undo the ruined patches on his injuries.

 “-You’re worse than a kid, I swear. Look at that mess you’ve done.”

 She firmly caught his hand as he tried to push her away.

 “-Here, behave. Let me fix that.”

 She cleaned the wounds again, a pained look on her pretty face. She examined his blemished flesh and the blood oozing again from the bullet injury, tenderly put some ointment on the burns over his torso, then cautiously patched him up with a clean dressing. He leaned to kiss her. His face was prickly, but it felt strangely good. She surrendered and kissed him back. Olivia wasn’t always able to resist Rolfo’s unexpected gentle moves. Especially since the last eleven months. It seemed to Olivia that their relationship was dangerously going out of control lately. But she knew for sure that he didn’t have any more grasp on his feelings than she had on hers. The thought was reassuring, somehow.

 She pushed him away lightly when their kissing grew frisky.

 “-Be a good boy, will you? I brought you some burgers.

-Thanks, Livia. You eaten already?

-Yeah, don’t worry. I needed to get some fresh air.”

 No wonder she wouldn’t jump in delight at the perspective of eating at the Honeybee’s. Rolfo ate his meal all too quickly, and then proceeded to enthrall her with little kisses, tender moves and his cute face. It didn’t take long to drive her mad, because he was absolutely not subtle at all. She laughed and tickled him. He squeaked and retreated.

 “-Now come on, tell me what you want, stop beating around the bush, will you?”

 She already knew his answer. _Sex, what else could he possibly want?_ He looked at his bitten nails, and hesitated.

“-Say, cara mia, would you go and get me some new shirts today? I can’t get downstairs exposed like that.”

 She blinked twice. Now, that was definitely unexpected.

“-I don’t remember you ever being that self-conscious before, carino. ‘Sides, everyone here knows how you look like.”

  _Ha. Of course, that was an easy excuse._ He lifted one finger, and responded with a playful smile.

 “-One word then: Dawa.

-Using a kid as an excuse. You’re getting lower everyday.

-You know me well.”

 She sighed in defeat as two pleading blueish eyes stared into her mahogany ones.

 “-Which style?

-Like the one I bought last week. You can choose the colour in retribution for running errands for me.

-Oh, really, you sure about that?

-Don’t make me regret…”

 His answer was cut short by a soft kiss. She was secretly delighted that he wanted her to decide for him.

 “-What size?

-Oh, you know that, cara mia: about 12 inches.”

 She threw a pillow right into his chuckling mug.

 “-You overestimate yourself, dear.”

 He giggled louder and made an exaggerated shrug.

“-Magari[1]! M size. There, party-pooper.”

 

The pillow flew back to its sender and Rolfo rose up to get his jacket. Every muscle in his body still hurt and he felt truly _exhausted_ , probably consecutively to the blood loss. However, the deep burns on his chest did puzzle him more: being vain as he was, Rolfo hoped he wouldn’t get too scarred. Sure, getting downstairs would be a pain but at least he would have some company. Loneliness was his doom.

 He gave Olivia a pack of gils neatly rolled together. Former dealers’ little habits died hard.

 “-You’re an angel, Livia.

-Hardly. But yeah, I’m nice. Try to deserve it.”

 She blew him a kiss and left the room without delay, to come back with a shaving kit and two shirts half an hour later. One navy blue, one dark red. That, and a pack of ridiculous briefs. He cackled at the sight but quickly held his chest in pain.

 “-Oh please, I can’t believe you dared… Vero, I should’ve known but…”

 He tried not to, but laughed so hard in spite of his cracked ribs at the little chocobos on one of the boxers that he started to cry. While every intake of breath was agonizing, he couldn’t regain his composure.

 Olivia came close to his giggling form and pulled at the only piece of clothing he had on, namely, his briefs. Rolfo suddenly grew very still, his kiddish giggles slowly fading away. Livia noticed his pupils had grown incredibly wide in a glimpse of time. He inhaled sharply and longingly gazed at her while she kissed random patterns around his flat tummy and on his thighs.

 Silence filled the room and he fell on his back to watch his unspoken sweetheart in the mirror as she blew him. The only sounds that could be heard were due to Livia skillfully dragging her tongue under his cock, before sucking on it like it was a treat of some sort. Two minutes passed, and Rolfo gave up on saving his dignity and didn’t try to hold back his moans anymore.

 He reached for her hand and held it tightly until he was done.

 

[1] If only ! or I wish !


	11. Chapter 11

**-Chapter XI-**

 

Thriving on painkillers and weed wasn’t such a bad idea, after all. Or so Rolfo thought, casually lounging in the Honeybee’s dressing rooms, his injured arm resting in a sling. He and Olivia had spent the night together, curled up under the blue room’s silky sheets. But she had already left we he woke up, and he came to the conclusion that she had headed home, because he knew she was off during the day. Waking up alone somehow drove him sad. He kicked the wistful feeling away by quickly gulping down some pills.

 A faint pink stain from Rolfo’s blood still remained on the green velvet of the couch, in spite of the girls’ attempts to clean it. It would disappear, eventually. The burns on his torso were slowly healing, but the fabric of his shirt and the bandages to protect his other wounds itched like mad. The young man tried to think about something else. At least, he was clean, shaven, and had some new clothes on. Aki still hadn’t had any news from Shinra labs concerning the smuggled candy, as for the Turks, Rolfo couldn’t draw any connecting line between Hanker and Shinra Company yet. The Don called from time to time, but the right hand man didn’t have any breaking news to broadcast. Corneo’s patience was obviously growing thin.

 That whole situation was infuriating.  

 Luckily, little Dawa was there to enlighten his mood. She unintentionally hurt him when she arrived. She squeaked joyfully as soon as she saw him, and jumped on the couch, shamelessly invading his lap and clumsily poking at his patched torso through the opening of his shirt.

 “-You got yourself a boo boo, Lolo-Micio?”

 He bit his tongue not to let out a pained noise, but winced nevertheless. He took her hand in his to push it away.

 “-Easy, easy, dear. Yes, I’m hurt, But don’t worry, I’ll be fine, cherubina. I’m afraid I can’t play much with you, though.”

 She wasn’t listening.

 “-Your cigarette smells funny.”

  _Ha. Yes._

 “-It’s medicine, Dawa.”

 Her mother chuckled as she dropped her coat and handbag in her locker.

 “-Medicine, why yes. I wish I was sick, too.”

 Rolfo held his spliff out to Yolanda “as a prevention measure”. She sat next to him and started smoking. The graceful beauty liked Rolfo mostly because Dawa had grown a crush on him, still, she had to admit he took good care of her, just like Sailor did. As far as she was concerned personally, though, he was nothing more than a harsh and perverted lackey of Corneo. She rejoiced the fact that he progressively had lost interest in any of the Honeybee’s girls but Olivia.

 Truth was that he still had sex with numerous nameless chicks, however, he fucked them at Corneo’s mansion or his place. He didn’t feel at ease anymore when screwing another hostess right on Olivia’s territory. He even had given up on threesomes with her. Rolfo himself wasn’t even totally aware that he had become full of rickety morals such as that little unspoken rule.

 Yolanda casually stroked her daughter’s curls.

 “-I’m glad you’re doing better, Micio. Dawa wouldn’t stop asking about you.

-I’m sorry. I know I had everyone worrying.”

 That wasn’t exactly true, but at the same time, it wasn’t completely erroneous either. In the cocooned world of the brothel, in spite of the rampant resentment between the girls and Corneo’s men, every single member of their little sinful crew had grown an odd bond towards the others over the years. Genuine concern was part of the process.

But that did not change the fact that they couldn’t bring Dawa into the public area of the Inn, let alone in one of the rooms, just so that she could check on her little “fiancé”. They had made up a whole story about him being on away from Midgar on vacation to keep the little girl from discovering the truth. Not to mention they weren’t even sure Rolfo would survive until he woke up. Thus, Sailor had inherited the good job that consisted in lying to a small innocent kid. Needless to say, the tattooed guy was delighted.

 As she was smoking with Rolfo, Yolanda felt the need to strike up conversation. She wasn’t at ease with silence, especially with one of the Don’s guys. Dawa played calmly with the golden chain around Rolfo’s neck, and she was obviously dozing off on his lap.

 “-I was told you were reckless as ever.

-Ha, who talked?

-Oh, you know, the usual Wall Market gossiping, nothing fancy.”

He smiled.

 “-I’m stronger than I look.

-You’re luckier than you deserve, that’s all, dear.”

  _Headshot._ _Nasty girl._ Rolfo grinned bitchily.

 “-Say, bambolina, weren’t you supposed to take your shift soon?”

 She grinned too, shook her head and gave him his reefer back.

 “-Gotta wait for the Don. He requested me specifically, today.

-He’s coming here? Oh madre mia[1] de porco zio[2] de...!”

 The rest of his –obviously very graphic- sentence was muffled by his hands, which he had brought to his face, in a theatrical move of despair.

 “-He’s mad at you, hm?

-You bet. He’s gonna end me, you mean.

-I’ll try to cool him down. A little.”

 He looked at her with a tired, jaded look in his indigo orbs.

 “-Be careful not to become too nice with me.

-Don’t worry, I won’t.”

 A little sleepy voice emerged from Rolfo’s embrace.

 “-Don’t worry, I’ll defend you.”

 Both adults smiled.

 “-Then, I’ll be fine.”

 Well, once again, he hoped so, at least.

 The backdoor swung open, and a gust of cold wind instantly cast a freeze spell on the room. Corneo entered, along with Jake and Sailor. Rolfo and Yolanda politely nodded. The right hand man’s heart was pounding in his chest, in spite of his apparent steadiness.

 Dawa woke up for good, smiled and waved at the lapdogs, then she rose and went straight to Corneo, firmly telling him she would not allow anyone to hurt her husband. The amused look on the Don’s face was impossible to miss. Sailor immediately lifted the little girl in his arms. She hugged and kissed him, but retained a very angry look towards Corneo’s back. The boss took a seat next to his lieutenant, ignoring Yolanda for the time being.

 “-Your harem is growing larger everyday, Rolfo. I might get jealous.”

 He paused.

 “-I guess you don’t have any more news than this morning?”

 Rolfo shook his head.

 “-I’m afraid not.

-That’s unfortunate, my boy. Really unfortunate.”

 Without warning, he snapped Rolfo’s shirt open and looked under the fabric, to get a grasp of the overall state of his outraged employee, and slightly frowned.

 “-This looks bad. Tough men, Turks, eh?

-Can’t say they aren’t.

-You were lucky to escape alive. I should kick some wisdom into those thick brains of yours, _idiota **[3]**_! You’re beyond common sense, I swear.

-At least, now we know there’s more to Finn’s business than we originally thought.

-That news isn’t worth your life.”

 Corneo swiftly made a discreet move addressed to Sailor. The tattooed guy immediately took Dawa behind the folding screen. Rolfo straightened himself. He knew the Don wouldn’t kill him there, still, he was fully aware that things weren’t turning out good. Corneo punched him hard in the face. A dry crack was heard. His teeth and cheekbone hurt like shit. The dark-haired man almost had no reaction, simply wiping the blood that escaped from his mouth.

 Corneo’s voice was white with restrained anger.

 “-Don’t you ever, ever be that stupid again. I know I shouldn’t have listened to you. I need my men alive, you bloody moron.”

 This was nothing new, they already had that conversation over the phone earlier. Rolfo felt that the boss actually needed to hit him to feel better. He did that often. But it had been a while since the last time Rolfo was directly concerned by the Don’s brutality.

 Corneo rose up and nodded to Yolanda. She went with him, kissing Dawa before leaving the room. Sailor and Jake sat on each side of their leader, and the little girl settled between her two best friends with a concerned look on her chubby face. Rolfo’s cheek was throbbing. Bad jewellery was engraved in his blemished skin. Dawa pouted, and climbed on him to kiss his mistreated flesh better.

 “-Will you be allright, Micio?

-I’m okay.”

 He smiled to the baby girl. The three men looked at each other uneasily, though. They had no idea on how things would turn out for Rolfo. Even if the Don’s little speech allowed to think that he wanted to keep Rolfo around, he could be lying.

 “-Nothing new, eh?

-Of course not. Shinra moves in mysterious ways.

-I’ve been racking my brains for three days, and I can’t come up with anything even remotely satisfying.

-We’ve asked around sector 3, the junkies, the hookers, everyone, but nobody seems to know anything. Hard to know if that’s true, or if they’re plainly afraid of talking. That’s not our turf, we can’t use our fists to make them talk.”

 Jake sighed.

 “-Look, guys. There _is_ a link. That’s an absolute certainty. Let’s think it over alright? We do know that Shinra company is involved in some way with Finn’s family, but it’s also involved with ours, that’s nothing new. But why the Turks? Why would Shinra send their assassins down in sector 3 slums? Does this mean that Shinra wants Finn to overtake the Don in sector 6 using Hanker as a bait? Or on the contrary, does it mean that Finn was getting in their way? Maybe they weren’t even there for Finn, but just for Hanker.”

 Rolfo had a dismissive gesture.

 “-Eeeh, I wouldn’t know, my head is full of meds, I can’t even think straight and I …”

 He was interrupted by the ring tone of his PHS. He answered, and his face gradually went blank.

 “Yeah, thank you, dude. Bring your ass here in Honeybee’s asap. Ciao.”

 He hung up, and looked thoughtfully at his partners.

 “-Signori[4], I guess I have that link that we were looking for.”

 

 

[1] Mother

[2] Litt. “My uncle is a pig” non blasphemous for “porco dio”. In spite of being a bad boy, most of the time Rolfo tries to avoid swearing because of his familial background.

[3] stupid

[4] Gentlemen


	12. Chapter 12

**-Chapter XII-**

“-Aki got the candy we found at Harvey’s place analyzed.

-Then what? Is it bad stuff?

-It appears that it’s some kind of brand new, non-traded yet molecule that could easily replace diamorphine for about half its price. A large amount of their stock was stolen two weeks ago on side A. Needless to say, Shinra labs are turned upside down at the moment we’re talking.

-So it’s good stuff, uh?

-Yes. But the trouble now is to explain how we got our hands on this stuff without winning a little courtesy visit form the Turks in the meantime. Even if avoiding a direct confrontation seems highly unlikely, now.”

 Sailor pondered.

 “-It’s impossible for them to believe that we stole it from their labs, who would be dumb enough to ask the very lab they robbed for an analysis of said candy?

-True. Now it means that we probably do possess info that Shinra needs.

\- And if they want to know who stole from their lab …  

\- …They’ll have to make a deal with us.”

 Rolfo grinned. Things were finally going his way. Dealing with Shinra Company would be dangerous, but certainly worth the risk. He liked gambling anyway. He wanted to hear the whole story from Aki before calling out the Don, though. In fact, he was planning on using that very piece of information to get back in Corneo’s good books, or, if necessary, to leave himself a way out of this mess.

 “-Who is that Shinra you keep talking about, Micio, Sailo’? Is she beautiful?”  

 The three men almost had forgotten the little lady was still there. They chuckled at her question.

 “-No, ragazzina, it’s not a someone, it’s a big company.

-Company?

-Well it’s a …”

 Harsh thing to explain to a 6 years old girl. Jake silenced Rolfo with a lifted finger.

 “-It’s a big, very big factory that produces electricity.

-You mean, that thing that comes out power sockets and I’m not supposed to touch because it’s dangerous? But why would a factory do something dangerous?”

 Sailor shrugged and eyed Rolfo and Jake in distress at her innocence.

 “-Because it’s useful too, to get the lights on, or to cook, for instance.

-Ah. I see, so that’s dangerous, but you can use it for good things when you’re a grown up. And someone stole their candy ? What meanies !”

 Ah, yes, they tried hard not to use the word candy to talk about drugs when Dawa was around, but that time, they were far too excited to finally have something to get their teeth into that they totally forgot to shut their mouths. As she was asking more questions, Sailor decided to create a diversion and asked the little one to come play football with him outside. She requested Rolfo to come along, but he quickly argued that he was still injured, and couldn’t run around outside yet. She nodded and thoroughly buttoned his still open shirt back up. Jake and Sailor were on the brink of tears, trying so very hard not to laugh as their leader was being put back in his place and dressed up by a little girl.

 “-You’re right, Micio. It’s cold, anyway. Stay here. I’ll go play with Sailo’.”

 Three of Corneo’s most famous lapdogs were almost not enough to help a 6 years old put her coat and scarf on, but they finally got over it, and she left, holding Sailor’s hand. Where in the world was he planning to get a ball? They had no idea. But they were sure he would find one. Sailor always found everything he needed, the very moment he needed it.

 Jake and Rolfo impatiently waited for Aki to arrive, and he did, after fifteen long and infuriating minutes and far too many cigarettes.

 “-Western delicacy !

-Rolfo-san. Jake-san.

-So, you have good news?

-Apparently, though it might not be as good as it seems. Our contact at the lab was beside himself when he got his results. That new molecule, it’s really big deal upstairs. Some heads were severed at Shinra after the robbery took place.

-He did inform his hierarchy, right?

-He didn’t have to. Every test sample is automatically transmitted to a database and every result is analysed and cross-examined individually. They already know.

-Means we’re getting visitors soon.

-If they were coming to kill that Hanker son of a bitch when you outpaced them, it could be really bad for us.

-Not necessarily. Because we know who stole the candy. Nothing allows us to think they knew Hanker was related to Finn.

-And if they did?”

 Jake had always had a talent for pointing out the weak points in Rolfo’s plans. Always. It was almost annoying.

“-We act all nice and neat and give the candy back. After all, we did their job, retrieving stolen stuff in our sector 6, killing the thief and all. As far as the Turks are concerned, we did nothing wrong.

-You said last week that Finn was providing Hanker with raw products.

-Yes, because he actually did. And everyone would have known in the slums if Finn had been killed by the Turks. Fact is, Finn is still alive. Thus the Turks –and Shinra company- must still believe that Hanker had stolen the candy on his own behalf, yet we know that it isn’t true. Which leads to the following conclusion: we do have intelligence they need. We’ll use that for our family benefits. Va bene?”

 Both men nodded in acknowledgement. Rolfo took his phone to inform the Don. He would be mad, of course, because he was having sex, but it would be worse to wait for him to come back.

 “-Capo? Scusate[1], it appears that we have news.”

 The older man grumbled and slightly coughed. His voice was really hoarse.

 “-Give me ten minutes.”

 He hung up. Rolfo pouted and let out a disgusted noise.

 “-I’ll never get used to his “I’m still inside” voice.”

 Jake shivered.

 “-Ah, will you talk about something else, please.”

 Aki remained unfazed. Nothing seemed to reach the taciturn wutaian killer.  

 Twenty minutes later, Corneo was back, alone. Yolanda was probably left behind with some customers. His lieutenant explained the whole story and the Don seemed to grow more nervous at every single word.

 “-Shinra labs? Nnngh that Harvey little piece of shit, bringing Shinra straight to our grounds. I hope you made him suffer a whole lot, my boys. Shinra company getting involved, it’s never good news. We have to go back to the manor. They’ll probably expect to find me there.

-I’ll come along. They saw me in sector 3. I’ll be your piece of evidence that what we actually say is true.

-I don’t want them to know we were involved in Hanker’s murder. I don’t wanna see your mug any close to the mansion as long as we’re not clear with Shinra’s intentions, understood? You stay here. You live here. From now on, and until further notice, you belong in here, got it? I’m the one who does the negotiations. I’ll give them info on the slums families, this is nothing unusual for me, and I’ll give them their bloody stock back. I can’t take any risks. I do not need a hothead like you around the mansion for now.”

 Rolfo was being sidetracked indeed, along with reproaches on his lack of caution regarding his own safety.

  _Sending mixed signals now, are we, Capo?_

 Fine, if the Don wanted to play dirty, Rolfo certainly didn’t mind. He watched Aki and Jake departing with the Boss. The two lapdogs felt uneasy with leaving Rolfo behind like that, but he knew they didn’t have much of a choice. Common sense in sector 6 was to put your own interests before the others’, and Rolfo certainly wouldn’t hold a grudge against them for this. Unless they tried to stab him in the back, but Jake was a friend, and Aki … Aki was far above all this shit to be treacherous.

 He cursed between his teeth, lit another cigarette, and thought it over, his head thrown back over the comfy fabric of the couch. Being called a hothead certainly bothered him. He never did lose his cool, and even if things had gotten sour in sector 3, he had little responsibility in that unfortunate turn of events. The only thing that the Don could really reproach him was to have insisted on going there alone, which almost led to his demise. Rolfo couldn’t foresee that Shinra men would pop up from nowhere. He killed the man, escaped the Turks, lost his pursuers, and finally made it alive. Corneo was being totally unfair on that one. Even if Rolfo had never been to sector 3 that day, Shinra labs would have analyzed Harvey’s stock of candy. And Shinra men would have come down Wall Market just the same.

 The dark-haired man sighed in frustration, and got up. He needed his jacket. He wanted to understand. He needed to know. He went back upstairs, to the blue room.   

The two little round holes on the upper right arm of Rolfo’s jacket had been unnoticeably sewn and there was no sign of blood anymore. His beautiful dark-skinned guard hound, as the Don called her, had apparently already taken care of it. He could wear this for now and buy another one later. Rolfo made a mental note, reminding himself to treat Olivia with a dinner somewhere, one of those nights. He sneaked out of the Inn through the backdoor. Sailor and Dawa were playing in the alleyway right behind the old house. There was no way they wouldn’t spot him. So Rolfo decided to go away by the front door, casually saluting Jesus and Manolo and behaving as if everything was fine.

 “-Hmm, Rolfo, you’re not supposed to …

-I know. Just pretend that you haven’t seen me, okay?

-Backdoor.

-Impossible, Dawa won’t hold her tongue. But I’m sure you two can, vero?”

 Manolo mumbled something that Jesus couldn’t understand in their native tongue. Rolfo seemed saddened at his words, but he simply shrugged, answered by a “Non preoccuparti[2]” and quickly left.    

 Even if Corneo’s place was pretty close to the Inn, Rolfo felt light headed as he walked through Wall Market, and even quite dizzy. He had taken too many pills, and probably smoked too much, to make things worse. Plus, he had to sneak his way there, through the muddy back alleys, avoiding puddles, and keeping his head low not to drag attention. He realized he had no idea on how he would get close to the mansion with his wounded arm. And he couldn’t reach the emergency escape without climbing a fucking ladder.

  _Cazzo_.

 Maybe the Don was right to label him hot-headed, after all. Rushing forward without having any plan in mind was so unlike him. He would really get in trouble someday. Something was definitely wrong with him, lately. He frowned, and tried to steady himself, gathering ideas, stomping his foggy mind back into shape.

 As he was facing the fence around Corneo’s house considering his options, Rolfo was caught by a firm but gentle arm around his waist, and gagged by a large hand. A familiar voice told him to stay put.

 “-Ti farai ammazzare se cerchi di entrare, carino[3].”

 Rolfo instantly knew Manolo was right on that statement. His whole body slouched to a defeated posture into the older man’s embrace. He suddenly felt very lost and very young.  

 “-Ma volevo[4]…”

 His plea sounded awfully weak, while Manolo’s voice sounded deeper than ever. The older man’s speech pattern had always been rougher in Midgar’s idiom than in their own.

 “-Come back to the Inn. There is nothing you can do for now.”

 The young man complied and followed his compatriot, his eyes on the ground in shame, as they made their way back to the brothel. Rolfo was upset, aggravated, and more than anything else, he was frustrated.

 Nevertheless, he thanked Manolo for having probably saved his life when they arrived in front of the Honeybee’s. There was no way to be sure the Don would have wanted him dead, however chances were quite high because Corneo would clearly be upset by the young man’s insolence, and Rolfo knew he should probably be thankful. Yet his words sounded bitter, more than he intended them to, because the youngster actually felt grateful even if he was still mad at his mentor. The older man was a true friend, and he had taken care of him since the day Rolfo arrived in sector 6. He knew Manolo’s advice was always good to take. But for now, frustration was getting the best of him. It shall pass.

 Jesus opened the door, and Rolfo once again entered the heavily adorned prison that was his. Lucia was in the corridor, thinking he was a customer.

 “-Micio? Where were you? I thought you were upstairs!

-I needed a breather.”

 She shook her head.

 “-Be careful. You’re still injured. I don’t want you to…”

 She couldn’t end her sentence. The door bell suddenly rang and she motioned for him to move aside.

 “-Via, via, get in the lockers room. We have many customers, today, you know. We can’t take care of you, dear.”

 Alma appeared from said lockers room and he quickly moved out of the way. He certainly didn’t need two irate hookers getting mad at him during rush hour.  

 Rolfo took off his jacket and sat on the couch. He could hear Dawa’s laughter bouncing on the walls of the alleyway behind. So much joyful innocence cut straight through his anxious mind. He shut his eyes tight and inhaled. His breathing sounded like a sob. It took Rolfo almost thirty seconds to realize he was on the verge of tears.          

 

[1] Sorry

[2] Don’t worry

[3] You’re gonna get yourself killed if you try to get in, sweetness.

[4] But I wanted to…


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for some homophobic behavior.

**-Chapter XIII-**

Dusk slowly fell above the plate, and Wall Market’s red lights reflected brothel-like colours in every pool of dirty water in the streets. Sailor had taken Dawa back to the Honeybee’s an hour ago, and they were having a bite of junk food with Rolfo, even though the latter had little appetite. The tattooed man shook his head in concern, watching Rolfo spacing out, lost in thoughts, forcing smiles when the little one spoke to him, without listening to what she had said. The injured man’s eyes were incredibly blue, and circled with red. Sailor started to wonder whether Rolfo had been crying, or if it was just from smoking too much weed. The inked guy decided to try to make his leader talk to him as soon as Dawa would be asleep.

No wonder, it was going to be an awkward experiment.

Sailor took a yawning Dawa into his arms and slowly rocked her, humming some sea shanty turned lullaby for the occasion. Playing outside for a few hours had been tiresome, that wasn’t unexpected: she fell asleep less than ten minutes after he started singing. Rolfo looked at them, biting his nails, a sad smile on his swollen mug. His hair was a mess. Sailor started speaking in a low, hushed tone.

“-Dude, you want me to go check what’s going on in Corneo’s place?

-I already sent a message to Jake. Turks haven’t shown up yet.

-And what if they had? You’d go alone? What exactly are you trying to prove?”

Rolfo ignored the question.

“-I need to find a way to sneak in, without taking the ladder in the back. I can’t climb fast enough with one arm to get unnoticed.

-There is no backdoor downstairs. Either it’s front door, or you’ll have to ape your way up.

-There is a trap in the Don’s room that leads to the sewers.

-It’s a one-way device, Rolfo. You can’t go up through that tunnel. There aren’t no stairs in it, you know.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Think Shinra’ll come at night?

-I wouldn’t put it past them.”

_Reputation, reputation._

“-I wonder if you’re right. Well.”

Sailor had made his mind up.

“-I’ll stay here with you tonight. You might need my assistance.” 

His statement was welcomed by a silly grin and a provocative stare.

“-Why thank you, but you’re not my type, _carino_.”

The tattooed man didn’t flinch, instead, he gave Rolfo a daring smile. Oh, he surely did screw girls, but nobody knew for sure which way that guy really swung, and Rolfo certainly didn’t want to dig that question any further. He immediately regretted his smart words, as Sailor pushed him a little more.

“-That’s too bad. I’m sure you’d enjoy it. A lot. Chicken.”

He winked. This time, Sailor knew he had won. Saying that the southern guy was ill at ease with gay innuendos was an understatement. Rolfo blushed up to his hair and lowered his nose in shame. To put things short, the idea of not being straight in the island he was born on simply didn’t exist by the light of day. The revelation of alternate sexualities had been a huge shock for the young man when he first arrived to Midgar in his early teenage years, a few months after the emergency evacuation of his now disappeared homeland of Siano Island.

Even if he now tried to hide it, since he had learnt one of his closest mates already had experienced such devious behaviour, Rolfo was still bemused at the sight of Big Bro and his guys from the gymnasium after all these years. He still didn’t like to get close to them, even in a bar. The way those fags whistled and talked about him and his good looks just to drive him mad was plain rude. As if he was some piece of meat or something. In the past, ignorance and mistrust had even led Rolfo to throw insults at them when they passed by on the streets of Wall Market. That was one more thing Rolfo wasn’t so proud of anymore either.

However, he made Sailor shut up crossly.

“-Zitto[1]! I’m really not in the mood for your shit, you little faggot.”

Sailor laughed quietly at Rolfo’s flustered look. Sure, the wounded guy was mad at him, but at least, Corneo and the Turks weren’t his major subject of worry anymore. Rolfo lit a cig and proceeded to smoke with his arms as folded as he could while wearing a sling. The deep frown on his face was almost comical.

“-Calm down, will you. I’m only teasing your little hetero ass. I’ll stay here to help you out when you rush headlong and get your ass kicked by Shinra. Or the Don. Or both. Why do you want to sneak on them so badly, bro?”

There was a sickening silence.

“-Corneo wants to take me out. Better be prepared, just in case.

-I don’t think so. He needs you, and if I may add my personal not-straight-enough opinion, he even likes you. He got so mad when the doc said he wasn’t sure you’d survive. Ha, I wasn’t supposed to tell you that. Well, too late now.”

He shrugged and went on.

“-Anyway, yeah, I think you’re something like a son to him.” 

Rolfo’s eyes darkened at these words.

“-He thinks I’m getting dangerous.

-He still needs you.

-Not in that shape, fra’, not in that shape.

-Then back to the beginning, no offence, man, but he likes you. A lot. No matter how injured you are now. You’re more than just a weapon to him. Because you’re strong-willed. Because you gave up on candy. Because you’re his best shot. Because you’re more clever than any of us. Don’t you think it would have been easier to just erase you when you were unconscious or to let you die from blood loss, rather than now that you’re awake, had he wanted to kill you?”

That sounded rather true. Maybe Rolfo was just turning paranoid. Or maybe was it self preservation.

He closed his eyes and blew his smoke to the ceiling.

Sailor’s PHS started to ring, he grabbed it fast, but not enough not to wake Dawa. Startled, she started whining. Rolfo motioned to her and she left Sailor’s lap to climb up on his, sucking her thumb. He kissed her hair to calm her down and held her tight with his good arm. But that tender moment didn’t last, a frown darkening his face again when Sailor’s conversation turned sour.

“-Corneo’s favourite babysitter here! Wait, wha..? Jake, fuck, where are you my man? How many? Yeah, yeah, I’ll take the guys with me. Comin.”

The two man stared at each other for a second when Sailor hung up.

“-Turks?

-Yes. Jake pretended to fall into the dungeon, just to get a chance to warn us. He’s wounded. Andrej too. I don’t know about Manolo, Jesus, Turner and Milan, but apparently, Aki has been knocked out too.

-We’re going. Who’s here for the nightshift? Quentin?

-And his beloved Enrique.”

Those two never got along. The atmosphere in front of the Inn sure was feisty that night. Rolfo was already on his feet, and he kissed Dawa goodbye before putting his jacket back on.

“-Sleep, carina. We’ll be back soon. Sailor, I’ll come with you. We’ll leave one of the guys here. I’m the only one who can fight long range of us four.

-And you’re sedated up to your eyes.

-I’ve known worse. End of discussion. I’m still your leader.

-It’s your life you’re throwing away, dude. Not mine. I’m not the one half dead and going for a boss fight.”

Rolfo forced Olivia’s locker open, fumbled inside, and clicked a restore materia into the handle of his left gun, and a fire one in the right gun. She wouldn’t get mad, provided he made it alive. They took Enrique along and rushed to the mansion.

As the three of them were peeping through the fence, they saw one of Shinra’s dogs, standing in front of the main door.

“-I’ll distract him.”

Enrique was thin and lean, but really fast. He slid through an impossibly small breach of the palisade, and threw a stone right behind the Turk’s head, pointed at him, laughed and ran away. The other hesitated, since he certainly had orders, but another accurate head shot got the best of his patience. He rushed after the young dude from Costa del Sol.

Rolfo and Sailor sneaked to the front door quickly, and Sailor risked an eye through the window before settling back next to Rolfo.

“-Two. One left, one right. Corneo’s alone with them. Couldn’t see much. Maybe our guys are down.

-I go first. Guard my back, fra’.”

Sailor had no time to protest, Rolfo had already kicked to door open and in spite of his ruined arm, he aimed at the Turks’ heads, a gun in each hand.

“-One move, one word I dislike, signori, and you’re both dead. I’ll make things clear: don’t touch my boss. Capo, you allright?”

Relief was obvious on the Don’s face. He nodded. Four men were on the ground, but Rolfo couldn’t tell if they were breathing or not.

One of the Turks turned to face Rolfo, totally unfazed at being in the lapdog’s firing line.

“-Hey. How’s the arm, pal? Wonder how long you can handle those big toys of yours with such a bad wound, yo.”

Rolfo gritted his teeth. That damn redhead.

“-Long enough to make you shut your fucking trap, foxy-shit.”

The other one, the strong, bald man with a honeyed skin, readjusted his gloves.

“-We didn’t come to fight.

-Yeah, obviously.

-I had the feeling that little Don over there was lying when he said he didn’t know anything more, yo. Seems I was right as always, dude. You’re the one who killed Hanker. Was it because he stole your loot?

-Stole our loot?

-Yeah, precisely.”

The tall man spoke again.

“-The molecule from Shinra labs. A single guy wouldn’t have been able to break in Shinra’s facility without any help from a … better organized syndicate, for instance.

-We were investigating on him, you see, to know who was pulling the strings. But you were faster than us. I can’t let anyone be faster than Reno of the Turks, yo. But still, we came too late to learn anything. And then, there was a miracle: your little western killer requests an analysis of our stolen stuff from our labs. It was almost too good to be true, honestly. So, was Hanker working for you? Did you kill him because he double-crossed you?”

Reno of the Turks was right, the gun was becoming heavier every minute for Rolfo’s mistreated arm. But he kept a straight face.

“-Capo, haven’t you told them what we know?

-I have no relevant evidence, according to them.”

Rolfo’s eyes were hard and cold.

“-So, dimmi un po’[2], Reno of the Turks. Why would we get something we stole from one of your shitty labs analyzed by another one? Are you telling me you’d be _stupid_ _enough_ to steal something on which you have no clue and then ask the victim about what it is exactly? Well, we are not.”

The redhead was infuriated.

“-Sianese scum.

-Faggot.

-Motherfucker.

-Son of a bitch.

-Enough, you two!”

Corneo’s voice was so loud and stern it was barely recognizable. Rolfo and Reno remained in their guard stance, shooting death glares at each other.

“-If I order my man to open fire, you both die. So let’s make things straight, you’re in no position to negotiate anymore. As I said before, Finn did steal your precious candy. And he tried to sell it here in Wall Market via that guy named Hanker, who provided one of my pushers. Both are dead. You two should pay a little visit to Finn. If you scare him enough, he’ll speak. He’s all talk.”

The Don slowly paced around the room.

“-I will make sure you get your shit back. But I don’t wanna see you in my house ever again. You will tell your scarface boss that we may be gangsters but we’re not low-lives like that Finn bastard. We make business. If your boss wants his candy back, he will have to come and retrieve it himself. Nobody insults Don Corneo in his own house.”

The bald guy was obviously more clever than his redhead partner, or at least, less hot-headed.

“- … I have to agree that the lab test part doesn’t quite fit in the scenario we had. But you understand that we can’t leave without the molecule.

-You’re not having it.”

Of course not, it was the only bargaining chip the Don had. 

The Turk took his phone and dialled a number, then held it out to Corneo.

The old man went to the back of the room to discuss, and came back a few minutes later, handing the phone back to the tall guy.

“-He wants to talk to you.

-…”

The conversation didn’t last long. He nodded to the redhead.

“-We’re leaving. Veld will meet you on the plate tomorrow. We’ll send someone to pick you up. You can take one of your men with you. Bring the candy.”

Reno and Rolfo glared at each other and the redhead guy nudged the dark haired one when they took their leave. He was rewarded by a vicious shove and stumbled over his bald partner, who pushed him away unceremoniously.

Once they had left for sure, Rolfo immediately went to check on his mates. To his relief, they were all alive. He cast a few healing spells hastily.

He didn’t hear Corneo coming from behind and jumped when he felt a large hand stroking his shoulder.

“-That was incredibly stupid from you. But thank you, son.”

Rolfo quickly came back to his usual self and grinned mischievously, in an attempt to hide his embarrassment at being called “son”.

“-No need to thank me, Capo. I love my job.”

[1] Shut up

[2] Tell me


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hurray for some other Turks making their appearance !!! ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

**-Chapter XIV-**

 

Enrique was back less than ten minutes later. He was still struggling to regain his breath, but he begun laughing in relief when he realized everyone was allright. His pursuer certainly was hard headed. Luckily, the Turk got a phone call during their frenzied chase through Wall Market, probably telling him that the others were leaving, and he immediately stopped running after Corneo’s man.

 Sailor had retrieved Jake from the dungeon basement, he had given him a potion and helped him upstairs. Rolfo’s friend had hurt his ankle badly when rolling down the stairway, but at least it gave him the opportunity to call for backup. Milan was passed out behind the counter of the bar, but he quickly came back to his senses. The others were cured by Rolfo when the Turks ran away, and Manolo lightly poked his protégé, a severe look on his face.

 “-I told you not to come, this afternoon.

-Sorry, behaving like the good boy I’m not has never been my type, you know that, Manolo.”

 Rolfo’s sheepish smile and wink made the older man roll his eyes in utter despair. The young wolf’s temerity was beyond common sense.

 “-Cretino.”

 The Don remained silent just the time needed for his men to congratulate themselves on the success of that reckless Corneo’s-squad-style rescue commando, then he raised his hands.

 “-Gentlemen, gentlemen, if you’re done with manly tears, we have a meeting to prepare.”

 Rolfo helped Jake who was having a hard time walking and looked questioningly at Corneo. The old man didn’t smile, but his eyes softened.

 “-I guess I can’t send you back to the Inn now, can I?”

 Rolfo shrugged and waited.

 “-You’re the boss, Capo.”

 The boss lightly pushed him towards the staircase.

 “-Everyone, in my office.”

 Of course, Corneo chose his right hand man to come side A with him the day after. Rolfo was still wounded and worn out, but the Don considered there was little chance that they should enter a fight right in ShinRa tower. Plus, he really owed him one that time. Things could really have ended up bad if Rolfo hadn’t come with Sailor and Enrique. Anyway, wounded or not, only one guard dog wouldn’t suffice against the whole ShinRa army, plus the Turks. So the Don opted for a strategic decision, namely not to upset his best asset. Corneo couldn’t repress the feeling he was rewarding him for being foolhardy, yet that was a necessary political choice. Rolfo wouldn’t feel cast aside anymore, and the Don knew that sparing his ego was the best way to keep the Sianese man under control.

 When two of the Turks arrived to pick them up the morning after, one of them, a very small but athletic young woman with long ashen-blonde hair whose ID read Freyra, handed an ID card to Rolfo. He blinked twice at the two women in black suits. Because of his traditional background and his past in Wall Market, he always had trouble considering women as his equals, let alone as capable of handling such tough jobs. He basically had two boxes he sorted ladies in : beloved family, dedicated to his mother and three sisters, and in which Dawa held a special place, or potential bed-mates, which could be moved from the bedroom to the kitchen if necessary. Lately, Olivia had without knowing it already crushed a part of that well organized way of seeing the world. As for those girls, they certainly didn’t fit in either of those categories. Rolfo was puzzled. Why did the Turk’s chief decide to send women to Wall Market in the first place? Was this provocation?

 Freyra mistook his silent reflection for a lack of understanding.

 “-It’s just so that you can go through the ID check in the train, you see?”

 The young man looked at the small plastic item, then at his boss, puzzled.

 “-What about you, Capo?”

 The old man chuckled.

 “-I do have one already, my boy. What did you think?”

 Rolfo bit his lower lip. Of course, he should’ve known. The guy had been in business with ShinRa for years, and he was free to travel out of Midgar, even abroad. His own naiveness embarrassed him. He swallowed hard.

 “-Ah, sì[1]. Of course.”

 A strong hand on his shoulder and a chuckle welcomed the shameful blush that spread on his tanned cheeks.

 “-Let’s go, my dear boy. You’ll see how things go, upstairs.”

 They took the train to Midgar Central Station and then a huge black car that drove them directly into the parking lot of ShinRa tower. Rolfo tried hard not to look dazzled, but totally failed at pretending to remain unaffected. Everything on the plate looked so modern, so white, so clean and high-tech. Even where he was born, where the sun was a gift they all shared, the streets did not seem so bright, and there certainly weren’t any building that stood that high. He looked through the windshield like a kid before a candy store. The ashen-blonde driver exchanged an amused glance with her partner in the rear-view mirror at the obviously astounded young man sitting in the passenger’s seat. She couldn’t help but take a peek at him again when they came in sight of the tallest tower in town. He muttered under his breath.

 “-Madonna… Are we really supposed to climb that high?”

 She giggled at his reaction. He definitely was her type, dark-haired, muscular, handsome yet not too tall, and the little remain of sunny accent on certain words he said was a huge turn-on to Freyra. Even with his beaten-up face and although he totally did not match her family’s wealth and minimum education standards, she most certainly wouldn’t mind screwing him some day. Her blonde-haired partner rolled her eyes in the backseat. Apparently, Emma wasn’t sensitive to Corneo’s man’s charm at all. It didn’t prevent Freyra from teasing him further.

 “-Afraid of heights?”

 He snorted.

 “-Of course not. I’m just not used to that kind of … Architecture. Y’know, principessa[2], it’s not like there is much room or materials to build very high on side B. Oh, my bad, how could you know, since you Turks certainly don’t come from the slums, do you?”

 He eyed her with a provocative smile, his elbow casually resting on the back of her seat. The Don looked like he wasn’t paying attention to their little chatter, but he clearly saw the blonde girl next to him glaring at Rolfo. He took his cigar out of his mouth to silence his bodyguard.

 “-Rolfo. No provocation. Apologize to the ladies.”

 The young man straightened himself.

 “-Sorry.”

 The driver cast a sideway glance and let out a sigh.

 “-Nevermind.”

 The Turk named Emma who was sitting next to Corneo crossed her arms, probably wishing that the ride would end soon. She wouldn’t have to wait for long, they were finally entering the huge metallic creature that towered over the city of Midgar. Freyra made them take the panoramic elevator on purpose, because it was slower and she could leer on Corneo’s lapdog for a little longer, and because she definitely thought that the slum dog in that glassed bubble overhanging the town would be a sight worth seeing. Emma didn’t object, for once. Perhaps because she thought she could get a sweet little revenge on that macho during the trip upstairs.

 She was absolutely right.

 Rolfo remained stiff as a board with his back to the furthest wall opposite the panoramic view. He was indeed scared of heights, and Freyra remained just in front of the void, teasing him.

 “-What if the glass broke and we all fall down?

-Oh, shut up, will you. I can’t wait to see how you’d be doing in Wall Market alone at night, you loudmouth.

-I’ll kick ass just like anywhere else, _beautiful_.

-So you say, _doll_.”

 Emma and Corneo chided them in unison.

 “-Freyra.

-Rolfo.”

 They stuck their tongues out to each other, then pretended to watch the view. The ascension took almost ten minutes, with everyone remaining silent.

 Upon arriving, they entered a vast floor full of doors – probably offices. The ShinRa logo was shamelessly spread on almost every wall available. The whole atmosphere was unsettling to Corneo’s bodyguard. Too clean, too square, too tidy.

  _Too chirurgical._

 Yes, that was exactly the right word. They crossed no one as they were taken to the far end of the right-side corridor, where a man with light brown hair and a deep scar on his cheek politely greeted Corneo as the latter put his attaché-case down on his desk without asking. The girls took their leave without a word, and closed the door.

 “-Veld.

-Don Corneo.”

 Neither of them paid any attention to Rolfo, and he was seriously starting to feel ill-at-ease as the two older men stared at each other for almost a full minute. Then Corneo open his briefcase and spoke again.

 “-We brought you what your beloved little team couldn’t retrieve for itself.”

 Veld looked at Rolfo.

“-I let myself be told that this young man you brought with you killed our target?”

 Rolfo answered, even if he apparently wasn’t supposed to.

 “-Yes, I did, mister. And I escaped your men too, if I remember well.”

 The Don looked aggravated at his lieutenant’s big mouth. Veld just smiled.

 “-I have been told that too, yes. Your name is Rolfo Sciara, if I’m well informed? I am head of ShinRa’s administrative research department, Veld.”

 Rolfo was caught off guard at the sound of his full name, which caused Veld to grin. He had _never_ told anyone his last name in the slums. Corneo included. The Turk leader continued, without ceasing to smile paternally.

 “-Well, mister Sciara, your boss and I have some private talking to do, if you’ll excuse us.”

 Veld called someone with his intercom. Rolfo hesitated to leave the Don alone with that weird man, but Corneo motioned him for the door. The bodyguard left when a long-haired wute dude came to escort him to a closeby office. He didn’t talk at first, offering a seat to Rolfo.

 “-You can smoke if you so wish.”

 Rolfo jumped on the opportunity with an obvious relief.

 “-Thank you … Tseng, is that right?

-It is.”

 The other had taken a seat in front of his computer and ignored Rolfo for a few minutes, then he took something in a cupboard of his desk, and looked Corneo’s man dead in the eye.

 “-You escaped Rude and Reno in sector 3, and you managed to take them by surprise once again yesterday, right?

-What if I did?”

 Tseng didn’t answer and tried something else.

 “-Rumours run in the slums, saying you are a good shot?”

  _Touché._ Rolfo couldn’t help but brag about it. He leant back in his chair, and exhaled his smoke.

“-Fastest trigger of the slums. I never miss my target. I am that famous on side A already, or did I really impress your redhead fox and his silent mate?

-You’re so full of yourself. You’d better learn humility sometime. But then again, orders are orders, and since Don Corneo brought you here, things will be easier than planned.”

 That guy was speaking in riddles now. Rolfo wasn’t in the mood for his shit.

 “-Oh come on, what’s with all of you, guys? Does nobody ever talk normally here? Are you Turks taught to behave like this or is just everyone weird on side A?”

 Tseng shook his head and sighed.

 “-Well, you won the opportunity to come and see for yourself.”

 He pushed a visit card towards Rolfo on his desk.

 “-Reno and Rude’s report on how you disposed of Hanker and your … Personal gutsy way of handling things impressed Veld a lot. Just call if you’re interested in working with us. Tough job we have, but exciting. Pays well, ensures a pass to travel everywhere, and last but not least, you’ll get a nice place to stay on side A, as you call it.”

 Rolfo looked intensely at the little piece of paper. If he wanted to leave Wall Market so hard a few hours ago, the actual possibility of betraying Corneo suddenly became too frightening. He didn’t want to be labelled a turncoat by his friends. He didn’t want to die. He gulped and pushed the paper back.

 “-Look, man. I’m a gangster. Not a cop of some sort.

-We’re no cops, and you know it.

-Whatever. We kill rats down there, and I’m not a rat, sir.

-Think it over. Take your time.”

 Tseng leant over his desk and slid the card into Rolfo’s breast pocket. The wute sat back in his chair, and added matter-of-factly :

 “-Just so you know, there won’t be any vendetta on a member of the Company. Business reasons. We made Don Corneo. We own him. Just like he owns you.”

 That last sentence hit Rolfo hard enough to make him cringe.

 “-Tch. You at ShinRa really believe everyone is to sell?

-As long as you offer the right price, we all are.

-You forgot something: the reactor ShinRa Company built on Siano destroyed my homeland by triggering a volcanic eruption, all because they dug too far. How could I ever lower myself to work for a company that totally destroyed my life? Oh, but wait, you don’t really seem to mind that kind of details, right, since Wutai and ShinRa have always been best friends.”

 Tseng narrowed his eyes at the attack, but didn’t antagonize Rolfo.

 “-How old were you then?

-Wha..?

-When the island was evacuated, how old were you?”

 Rolfo lit another cigarette. Since Tseng would most certainly not leave him be if he didn’t answer, he went for honesty.

-Fourteen. We were all brought to Junon, and my family settled down in Kalm. Couldn’t stand that fucking town. I ran away a few month later and came to Midgar, where a friend of mine taught me how to … Y’know, efficiently defend myself. And I ended up working for the Don.”

 Well, Rolfo almost went for honesty. The real, official reason why he left Kalm in the first place was that he had had sex with the daughter of a villager, and they were supposed to get married in repay for bringing shame on both their families. Rolfo quickly decided he’d rather go die in the plains than spending his whole life married to a chick he hardly knew in that backwater village. They were only fifteen after all. He stole his father’s gun and managed to make it to the door of Sector 6 slums in Midgar. This was where Manolo found him and took him under his wing, impressed by the young dude’s survival skills.

 “-I won’t betray my family. Don’t expect any phone call soon.”

 However, Rolfo kept the visit card in the breast pocket of his jacket. It felt like it was burning his skin through the fabric. Veld’s voice on the intercom calling them back into his office was the first sound to break the heavy silence that had fallen into the room for the last twenty minutes.

 

[1] Yes

[2] Princess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Voilà ! Introducing Shotgun (Freyra), Gun (Emma), Tseng and Veld. I'm glad to have more Turks to play with. Things are finally going to move.   
> Thank you for reading (ノ^∇^)


	15. Chapter 15

 

  **-Chapter XV-**

 

When they came back to Veld’s office, Corneo already had his attaché-case in hand, and he smiled to his lapdog and to Tseng.

 “-So, how did it go, the two of you? Did you get along well?”

 Tseng simply nodded. Rolfo smiled back at his boss but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. He still felt uneasy about what had just happened.

 “-I guess so. I’m nothing but a stranger in a foreign place, after all. Everything’s different and new. People included.”

 The Sianese looked intently at Tseng, who just let a hint of a smirk grace his face. Corneo laughed.

 “-You’ll get used to all this, my boy.”

 Tseng bowed and went away since his presence wasn’t required any longer. Rolfo lightly acknowledged his leave with a nod of his head. When the Wute closed the door, the Turk’s chief asked Rolfo for his visitor ID.

 “-Could you give me back the ID Freyra gave you this morning?”

 Rolfo nodded and searched his pockets. Fortunately, it wasn’t in his breast pocket with Tseng’s visit card. He gave the ID back to Veld. Now that was too bad. The bodyguard would have enjoyed being able to come to side A without having to climb that damn wall. Well, it wasn’t as if he had already done it before, after all. He never came to upside Midgar. There was a short silence, and Corneo and Veld smiled in connivance. The scarred guy handed Rolfo another plastic card.

 “-There. Here you go. An official, final ID for mister Sciara.”

 There was Rolfo’s full name on it. There even was a picture of him. He looked at Veld then at the Don in disbelief.

 “-Eeh?”

 Veld went on with some explanations.

 “-A piece of our bargain with your boss, some kind of reward for your work. In exchange for … Handling our Hanker problem, and getting the molecule back, if you wish.”

 Rolfo immediately understood that this wasn’t a result of their bargain at all, but most likely due to Veld wanting him to join the Turks’ ranks. However, Corneo had requested this for him, and even if the fact that his demand had actually been granted had nothing to do with Hanker nor the Don’s influence, Rolfo was still pleasantly surprised by Corneo’s little attention. The downside was that it made him feel even more troubled at the perspective of betraying him. He looked at the Don with an unreadable expression on his bruised face.

 “-… Thank you, capo. And thank you, sir.

-You’ll have unlimited access to the plate, the ability to travel abroad, to leave Midgar whenever you feel like it.

-Keep this to yourself, my boy. We certainly don’t want the others to know, hm? This is gonna be our little secret, right, Rolfo?”

 The bodyguard nodded.      

 After a few usual formal business-polite exchanges, Veld called the girls back to escort them to Midgar station. Freyra and Emma were in his office less than five minutes later, and they took that damn elevator once more. Rolfo decided he definitely wouldn’t work in such a fucking high place for anything in the world. The ashen-blond haired Turk stood next to him that time, slightly brushing her shoulder against his left arm as if it wasn’t on purpose. She was so small in comparison to him, Rolfo couldn’t help but smile. Olivia was much taller than this girl, and how much more beautiful was she. He never really liked blondies anyway. But who was he to deny some innocent fun? He pushed her a little, kid style. She pushed him back, but of course, he didn’t even flinch. He giggled and pushed her again. A simple “hem” from Emma prevented Freyra to counter-attack that time. The Don was looking at them with an amused smile. However, Freyra and Rolfo still eyed each other and tried hard to muffle their chortles before they reached the parking lot.

 The drive to Midgar station was quite silent, Rolfo managing that time not to look too bemused at the sight-seeing, and Freyra being a little sad not to have managed to push him totally out of his hinges. Not to mention she thought she wouldn’t meet him again anytime soon.

 When they parted, Corneo bid the ladies good-bye, and Rolfo bid farewell to Emma, then winked to Freyra.

 “-Take care, ragazza, eh?”

 She was surprised and didn’t answer right away.

 “-…Yeah. You too.”

 As they were in the train back to Wall Market, Rolfo eyed the Don questioningly, hoping to learn a few things on how things had gone with Veld. The boss smiled. He didn’t want to and couldn’t talk about business on the train. So he decided to play a little with the nerves of his subordinate.

 “-She wanted you in her bed, that little blonde. Freyra, is it?

-Yeah, figures.

-But she’d definitely be the one on top!”

 Corneo laughed, and Rolfo pouted.

 “-Oh come on. You’re no fun, capo.

-Oh please, now don’t be upset. It’s not like you need to learn anything about sex with a nice little girl from a good family. Those chicks, though … They like guys like us, you see. The dangerous ones. The misfits. Maybe you should give her a try. See this as a new experience. Now that would change you from Wall Market’s little ladies, I’m sure. Someone a little classier. It would suit your new taste in clothes pretty well. And I’m sure she tastes as good as she smells.”

 The black haired bodyguard once more felt sick at his boss’ words.

 “-I’m not sure I’m much into that kind of rich spoiled brats.”

 Corneo giggled, playing with his middle finger ring.

“-You cannot know until you get a sip of her. Try everything. Taste everything. You now have open access to the world, my boy.

-The world isn’t just about fucking random chicks, you know, Capo.”

 Rolfo regretted his words as soon as he had said them. One, upsetting the boss now wasn’t a good idea, and two, Corneo had just earned him –or he thought he had earned him- an official ID. Being that rude was totally uncalled for. Rolfo was on the edge, and this made him say foolish things.

 “-I’m really sorry, boss. Scusate, I must be tired.”

 Corneo looked at Rolfo as if he had never seen him before, then he shook his head, and sighed. As Sailor said earlier, Rolfo was lucky Corneo liked him, and he was maybe even luckier that there were no witnesses to his little burst of temper. However, in spite of his bodyguard’s behaviour, the Don never lost his composure.

 “-No wonder you are, my boy. Nevertheless, I’m afraid there is more to your words than just meds and exhaustion. That girl from the Inn, what’s her name, already? Olivia, is it? –Rolfo nodded- Yeah, that’s it. You’re in love with her, right?”

 Rolfo almost chocked on his cigarette.

 “-Capo I …

-Shh. Now you listen to me very carefully, Rolfo. Don’t let love cloud up your mind. You’ve been reckless, air-headed, unfocused, and put yourself uselessly in danger lately. If you love her, fine, talk to her, but be honest with each other. I’m an old coot and a perv, you see, but I might know of a few things about love that you ignore. You must be well aware that fucking a hooker and loving her are things that stand on a totally different level, aren’t you? You won’t be able to have any satisfying relationship if the two of you remain as you currently are. Jealousy is a poison that will ruin your minds and hearts. I’ll find her a job in a bar if you ask me to. Once that problem has gotten off your ever-thinking brain, you’ll be efficient again. You follow me? If you decide not to change anything, then fine by me, but I won’t tolerate any foolishness from either of you anymore, is this clear?”

 Rolfo swallowed cautiously and took a drag of smoke.

 “-Yes, it is. Very well. We’ll settle things with Livia.”

  _After all, I had planned to invite her for dinner tonight_ _anyway_ , he thought to himself. But talking about commitment, now that would be something totally unexpected, and absolutely awkward for them both.

 The Don lit a cigar right before they reached Wall Market station. His briefcase was full of the good old-style candy Veld had given him for disposing of Hanker and giving away Finn, and once again, there was business to be conducted for the Don in Wall Market, and _a lot_ of gils to be made. He requested Rolfo to gather the guys at the mansion upon their arrival, just opening his case and showing him in his office how much stuff they had to sell this time. Rolfo’s eyes went wide.

 “-How much is in there already?

-Exactly 16 pounds.

-But that makes about …

-About two hundred million gils, yes.

-How the fuck???

-We saved them a lot of trouble, not to mention a lot of money. Guess what? Their molecule isn’t even patented yet. Unfortunately, we don’t have the means to steal their technology down here to get a patent before they do, but two hundred millions were a right compensation, I suppose. Don’t worry, you’ll get your fair share since you did almost all the work. Bring the boys here. We can’t sell that much at once but better start now.”

 Corneo called Rolfo back when he was about to leave the room.

 “-Rolfo? Don’t tell them how much candy there really is.

-Capisco[1].”

 The boys in question were scattered in two bars, playing mahjong for four of them, and drinking while enjoying some hostesses’ company, for the four others. Milan and Jake were bouncing at the Inn that evening. The perspective of working after a day of lounging certainly didn’t make them jump in delight, especially when the Don dismissed Rolfo for the rest of that night. The boss had already made disappear the most part of the candy in some of his hidden safes, and only a not unusual amount of bags remained on his desk, for the pushers to make their job. Corneo put his hand on the small of Rolfo’s back.

 “-Now, enough for tonight, my boy. Go and get some rest, your injuries won’t heal that fast.”

 It only meant time had come for a real adult talk with Olivia. The young man wasn’t really sure he wanted that, but on the other hand, Corneo was right : the idea of her getting screwed by other guys was less and less tolerable to Rolfo, even if he pretended hard not to think about it at all. After all, maybe she’d simply refuse to change her job. But at least, things between them would be clear. Still, the young man wasn’t really sure he wanted to get involved with her for good, nor wanted he his heart to be broken by her refusal. Finally, Rolfo came to the conclusion that maybe he enjoyed things better when they remained undefined in a blur of some sort.

  _Was love always that complicated?_

 He thought it over while crossing Wall Market again, alone, a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth. He realized that to his knowledge, Olivia was supposed to be on the afternoon shift that day and would probably have left the Inn already. He didn’t even know her phone number, let alone her address. It turned out that they weren’t that close at all, on a second thought. He went to the Honeybee’s, hoping to ask one of the girls in the backrooms to reach his lover. Jake and Milan greeted him cheerfully, since they were happy that the Don wasn’t obviously mad at their leader anymore.

 “-Well done, Jackass.

-Thanks, fra’.

-She ain’t there, you know.

-I know. I just need to speak to Lucia.

-Ah, maybe if you’re lucky she’ll be downstairs. Today’s been quite meh, no one in the streets. I guess it’s getting too cold.

-Fine, I’ll go and check. See ya, guys.”

 Rolfo entered the Inn by the backdoor. Dawa wasn’t there, Lucia neither. Alma and one of the new girls they had “trained” at the mansion two weeks before were getting ready for their shifts. Fine, he’d try to subdue Alma to get what he wanted.

 “-Ladies.

-Dude.”

 The new girl didn’t dare answering as straightforwardly as Alma, and she nodded to Rolfo. He closed the door and took a seat next to Alma. The young man watched her as she cautiously put pastel colours on her pretty face. She smiled while carefully painting her lips.

 “-Need some make up for that black eye and that cheek, sweetie?”

 He laughed and pushed her hand away as she tried to put some powder on his nose.

 “-I’ll be fine, thanks.

-So you say. A little foundation would do you good, though.”

 He pushed her back again.

 “-Come on, stop that. Alma, I need to talk to you.”

 She put her lipstick back in her purse and put her motherly look on.

“-Oh gods, what in the world have you gotten yourself into again?

-Oh c’mon, nothing, no need to give me that look. I must see Livia.

-My poor little sweetheart, she’s on her “five day holiday” you know.”

 Periods. Ha, as if he needed that tonight.

 “-I don’t care, I want to talk to her. And …”

 He looked down and pretended to be shy to make her yield.

 “-I wanted to take her out for dinner, because she took care of me.”

 Alma addressed the young girl next to her –A tall blonde called Eydis, if Rolfo remembered her name well.

“-He wanna take her to a restaurant. Ain’t that sweet, honey?”

 Eydis smiled while putting her mascara.

 “-Yes it is.”

 Rolfo looked up again, nervously playing with his golden lighter.

 “-Alma, please. Any phone number, or address?

-Don’t you have any of the two?

-I never needed them before today.”

 The chubby girl rolled her eyes and sighed.

“-You two really are complicated, you know that. Listen, sweetheart, I’m not giving you her number if she hasn’t done it herself.”

 The desperate look in Rolfo’s eyes managed to make Alma’s naturally good heart melt.

 “-But I can call her for you if you wish. You’ll ask her yourself.

-Thank you, bellissima. Thanks a lot.”

 He kissed her on the cheek and she asked for a real kiss instead. He looked blasé, but Alma finally earned a peck on her lips and giggled.

 “-My, my, you really want her number, right ? Fine, I guess that kiss will suffice for one phone call.”

 She dialled and Olivia answered quickly, to Rolfo’s relief. He took Alma’s PHS and went outside to talk.

 “-Hey, Livia.

-Rolfo? What the … ? Are you allright?

-Yes, yes. Say… Cara mia I… Well I was wondering if … Oh cavolo[2], Olivia, what about a dinner with me tonight?”

 There was a silence and then she started laughing.

 “-Are you actually asking me out, cucciolo?”

 His answer sounded really unlike the usual velvety voice he used to talk to the girls.

 “-Hmm, yea? So?”

 He could _hear_ her smile at the other end of the line.

 “-Just let me get dressed a little. I’ll call you when I’m ready, in about twenty minutes, allright? Give me your number.

-Got a pen?

-I’m all good.

-That’s 88 4 576 867.”  

 

[1] I got it

[2] Shit or Damn


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluff and nothing but in that chapter. Let us forget about mafia life for one evening.

**-Chapter XVI-**

When he gave Alma her phone back, Rolfo was smiling like a schoolboy. The hostess was relieved, somehow. Eydis was already gone, but as she was an experienced employee, Alma, just like Lucia and Livia, wasn’t afraid to take certain liberties with her shifts.

 “-Everything went according to your master plan?

-She calls me when she’s ready.

-Great. –She pauses- Say, just being curious, where will you eat?”

  _Ha. Good question._

 “-Eh, actually I …

-You haven’t decided yet?”

 Alma laughed at him.

 “-Micio, seriously.

-I don’t even know what she likes eating, you know. We always strive on junk food. Anyway, there aren’t that many real restaurants in Wall Market.

-Ever thought about Vulcano Island?

-Sianese food?”

 He thought a little about what Alma said.

 “-You think she’d like?

-At least I guess you can tell her what’s good and what’s not. Otherwise you could go for Wutainese food.

-I don’t know shit ‘bout Wutai, you know.

-So impress her with your homeland specialties, dear. I’ve tasted those before, and it’s really different from Midgar’s shitty food.

-I’m afraid Sianese cuisine from Midgar slums will be really different from my mother’s cooking, too.

-Well, that’s easy then: you take her to your beloved mamma.

-Oh please.”

 He pushed her lightly on the sofa and she dragged him along in her fall, catching him by the left arm. She rested her head on his shoulder and inhaled. She had always liked his perfume. And unlike the other girls, Alma could honestly say she loved him, probably because she arrived at the Inn when Rolfo wasn’t far from dropping his addiction, and moreover, because he hadn’t slept with her at all. Not that he didn’t find her pretty or appealing, but she reminded him of his older sister too much for that. This was probably the reason why his behaviour with Alma had always been much more gentle than with any of the other chicks in all Wall Market.

 “-So, you’re really marrying her? I’m so glad for you guys.

-Heu, don’t you jump to conclusions, dear. We’re going out, for the first time, that’s all.

-Remind me, you’ve been sharing the same bed for..?”

 He had to think for a while to answer that one.

 “-About three years. I guess. Yeah, that’s something like that.

-You really took enough time to think things over, eh?

-We said no commitment.  

-Yeah, yeah. Still you’re fidgeting every single time she’s busy and you wait for her to come back.

-That has nothing to do with commitment!”

 Alma smiled without making any clever comment. Rolfo crossed his arms and started sulking because he would never admit she was damn right.

 “-Don’t start playing your drama queen on me, sweetheart. From the day I met you, I knew you loved her. It’s so obvious I wonder how the both of you can still ignore it.”

 She poked his unharmed cheek and giggled before rising up.

 “-Well, I gotta work a little, otherwise the Don won’t be able to buy his cigars this month.”

 Being easy going as he was, Rolfo did never sulk for long, and he smiled at her.

 “-Be careful, will you?

-Always is.”

 She pushed his unruly hair aside, kissed him in the middle of the forehead, and laughed.

 “-You should wash that lipstick away before meeting Olivia, you know?

-You little…”

 She quickly ran away to the public area of the Inn, while Rolfo rushed to the mirrors to get some cleansing lotion. Silly Alma could be quite a pain sometimes. He was still rubbing his forehead when Livia called.

 “-Hey, sweetie. Where are you?

-I’m still at the Inn, where do you want us to meet?

-Hm, see that videogame store at the angle next to the Marengo bar?

-The one with the MILF hostesses?

-Rolfo !

-What? Isn’t it the one?”

 She sighed, resigned.

“-Yeah, that bar. I’ll be waiting in front of the game store.

-Gimme five minutes. I’ll be right there.”

 Rolfo dropped the lipstick coloured cotton pad in a bin and without delay, he saved Olivia’s number in his phone. He was glad she didn’t hide the caller’s ID. Maybe things would turn out good, for once.

 He made a last mirror-check and ran a hand through his messy curls. That’d be good enough. Anyway, he looked like a ruffian, even in his new suit. The bruise around his eye was gradually turning to a sickly green, his bottom lip was split, and his cheek had been cut in several places by the Don’s jewellery. He secured his arm back in the sling that most of the time hanged, useless, around his neck and left for the videogame shop.

 One day, his father had told him to never date a girl without bringing her flowers. He almost regretted there weren’t any in sector 6. Well, next time he’d go to side A beforehand and buy her something sweet. If there ever was a next time after their conversation.

 When he caught sight of Olivia, she was standing with her back to him, wearing red knee-high socks, leather-brown platform shoes, a leather jacket from the same colour, and a denim mini skirt. Her short afro was highlighted by a small red ribbon and large earrings. He instantly fell in love once again the very instant she turned to him and smiled.

 “-Hey, beautiful.

-Hey, sweetie.

-Sorry for asking out of the blue but…

-Nevermind. It’s not as if I had been hoping for you to ask for years now.

-May I remind you that you had the physical ability to ask me out yourself all that time, too?

-I didn’t want to sound _that_ desperate, you know.”

 Olivia grinned. He elbowed her with an offended look, but quickly snaked his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him. They didn’t kiss, although he rested his forehead on hers for a second in a tender gesture.

 “-So, how ‘bout some culinary specialties from Siano, amore?”

 She pretended to think it over.

 “-I’ve been tasting quite a lot of things from that island lately, some bitter, some sweet, but I must admit cuisine isn’t one of those.”

 This made him laugh.  

 “-Let’s try something new, then.

-Allright, I’m in.”

 The restaurant was pretty close by, and they ended up sitting on the first floor of a red bricks building, with pictures from the island on every wall, jars full of various shaped pasta, and checkered red and white tablecloth. Rolfo had been there once before but he didn’t remember much about that evening. It was more than five years ago, and he was probably drunk as fuck. The whole scenery forced a smile out of the young man.

 “-Feeling nostalgic?

-Hm? Yeah, maybe a little. It looks so… Artificial. Like a setting from a bad movie.

-Oh, so the lot of you don’t eat on vintage tablecloth using wine bottles for candlesticks?”

 He took her hand in his, dreamily, and played with her fingers.

 “-Well, I’m afraid not. Maybe my grandparents did, though. I wouldn’t know where all this colourful staging comes from.

-Your grandparents, you still have them?”

 He pondered before granting her with an answer.

 “-I don’t see my family often, you know. I’m sort of a disgrace to them. They’re very religious. But yeah, I still have three of them. Everyone on my mother’s side, and my grandmother on my father’s.”

 Families. Such a strange thing to discuss after three years. Olivia didn’t want to push the subject further.

 “-I only know my mother’s family. But I have both my grandparents.

-You were born in Midgar, right?

-Yeah. Sector 4 slums. You could say I have never seen the sun, somehow. I envy you, sometimes.

-Ha, yeah, I tend to miss the sea too, lately.

-Is it as beautiful as people say?

-More than that. Hope you’ll get to see for yourself someday.”

 Maybe they could even go together, Rolfo thought. The waitress brought them the sparkling wine Rolfo had ordered, and gave them the menu. She was delighted when he thanked her in sianese, and she started discussing and acting more friendly to them, giving advices on the course they should choose. Olivia felt a little lost cos both of them were speaking very quickly, and even though she could understand when Rolfo paid attention and talked slowly, two natives chatting together were something else entirely. To her surprise, her lover quickly noticed that she didn’t get a word of what they said and shifted back to Midgarian right away.

 “-Oh, sorry, amore. Graziella was suggesting taking either baked tuna or grilled veal.

-Oh, you mean no pasta?”

 He grinned at her exaggerated sad look.

 “-Would you like some pasta better?”

 She nodded.

 “-I thought I’d never have a better occasion. Choose for me.

-You trust me on that one? –She nodded, amused- Va bene. Don’t come complaining.”

 He ordered –quickly and in sianese so that Olivia could not understand- pasta with olive-oil, garlic and pepper, adding that they didn’t plan on kissing that night. Graziella laughed aloud and took the menus back before leaving.

 “-Is this your favourite dish you just ordered?

-Not my favourite fave, but I’d say second fave.  

-Can’t wait to have a taste.

-I hope you’ll enjoy it. It’s spicy.

-I like things spicy, you know that.

-Hm, figures. You’re so hot yourself.”

 She smiled. Rolfo was really having a good time, casually talking about personal stuff, sharing memories and opening up for good to Olivia. He didn’t want to ruin the moment with what he had to confess to her. After all, she was a clever girl, she must’ve been aware that he loved her. He needn’t tell her. Rolfo wasn’t really into psychoanalysis, but knowing Olivia’s temper, he feared that talking about commitment on their first official date would be assimilated to trying to infringe on her independence. This would ruin the whole fragile relationship they had. He took the decision to shut his trap on that matter for the moment being, and showed her a picture on a nearby wall.

 “-Hey, check this out. That’s the port of Barche, the town I was born in.

-Really? Gorgeous! Oh my god, that many flowers, it’s so colourful.

-Pink laurels and hibiscus, yeah. And I wish you could sense the smell of warm sand.”

 She looked at Rolfo while he was talking. Somehow, she was glad to see him in a new light, his eyes bright, full of so many different emotions that she couldn’t really understand what he was experiencing. Of course she couldn’t know how he felt, because she knew she still had a home to return to in case of real trouble. Olivia realized she never really thought about that before. To her, Siano Island was nothing more than minor news in a TV broadcast when she was young. How horrible it must have been for him, for all of them, to witness their home devoured by lava before sinking into oblivion. She held Rolfo’s hand a little tighter. He stopped speaking, his eyes back to hers.

“-Ha, I talk too much, right?

-Don’t worry. I like it. Tell me more about your hometown.”

 He blushed hard. She found it cute.

 “- I wouldn’t know what more to say, now.”

 She smiled and leaned to kiss him. He had closed his eyes before their lips even touched. They exchanged only a light brush of sensitive velvety skin over a scarred one, but the whole contact was overwhelming, slow, soft and meaningful. When blue eyes met dark ones again, they shared an understanding that they hadn’t experienced yet only seconds before.

 The punchy waitress broke the spell with two plates gracelessly put before them on the small table.

 “-Enjoy your meal, sweeties. Buon appetito!”

 They thanked her, even if Rolfo glared at her for ruining this special moment. Olivia smelled the plate.

 “-Garlic?

-Yeah, and hot pepper.

-I’m not sleeping with you tonight.”

 They both laughed, though he hoped she was kidding. Even if he had no idea on how things would turn out once he’d have invited her for a sleepover at his place.

 Olivia did like what he had ordered, and their little rendezvous went from enjoyable to plain delightful. They decided to have a cocktail in a nearby café afterwards, and it was half past one when they finally thought about heading home. Rolfo grabbed Olivia by the arm and make her turn 45 degrees to face him as they were crossing Wall Market once more.

 “-Say, carina, wanna come over to my place?”

 She rested a graceful hand in the wide opening of his shirt, caressing soft warm skin.

 “-I’m on my periods, you know? We can’t … You see. Moreover, it’s not a really attractive sight to see.”

 He raised an eyebrow.

 “-So, what? I have two older sisters, I’ve been facing evil already. No, seriously, you have nothing to be ill at ease about or ashamed of. I know how girls work, sai[1]?”

 Once again, he took her by surprise. How could that alpha male, that macho, sometimes be such a jerk and other times, become so thoughtful and kind? She surrendered.

 “-I’d prefer going to my place, then.

-Wherever you’re more comfortable.

-I’m warning you, if you don’t stop acting so nice…

-Yeah? What do I risk?

-I haven’t decided yet.”

 She kissed him, grabbed him by the waist and led him to her small flat. In fact, she lived right above the videogame store. Her place was neat and tidy, well adorned, with numerous pictures on the walls, mostly with the Honeybee’s girls, but some with people who were probably her family. Rolfo took off his boots upon entering, and cautiously inspected the living room, like a cat in a new place. She put some music on as he was having a look around.

 “-Cute nest you have here.

-Thank you. I really like that place.

-It’s so you.

-So me?

-Yes, the items, the colourful furniture, the records … Everything here is you. I like it.”

 She took her jacket off and put her bag on the table.

 “-Thanks. Make yourself comfortable. Would you like a drink?

-Oh gods, no, thanks, I’m full.”

 He put his jacket down on one of the chairs and sat next to Olivia in the couch. She yawned and cuddled against him. He poked her nose.

 “-Tired?     

-Yes. And busy digesting. Thank you for the evening out, cucciolo. It was perfect.

-For me too.”

 He rested his chin on her head, watching around, and slowly dozed off in her warm embrace. As his eyes fell closed in slow motion, she shifted a little.

 “-We should go to bed.”

 He nodded, but didn’t move until she rose up. Her bedroom was very small, with two tiny windows on each side. The bed was filled with numerous cushions, and some plushies. Rolfo stood in the doorway for a while, not daring touching anything for fear of disturbing what looked a lot like a little girl’s room. The hands of Livia on his hips pushed him forward.

 “-Don’t be shy now, sweetie. Bathroom is left door, just in case. I’ll join you in five minutes. Go to bed.”  

 Rolfo started undressing himself down to his boxers, and washed his face before removing some stuffed cats and rabbits and chocobos and god-knows-what from the covers. He finally slid his sore body under the soft sheets and stretched. Olivia came back less than five minutes later, with only a pair of pink shorts on. She put the lights out before settling against her lover, laying kisses around his bandages and sucking the soft skin on his neck. She loved to leave numerous hickeys on him, so the other chicks knew even if he fucked them that his heart was all hers. She finally put her head on his chest, and her breathing gradually became even and calm. When Rolfo was sure that she had fallen asleep, he whispered softly to the darkness veiling the room, while kissing her hair and trying not to wake her up.  

  “-Ti voglio bene, Livia, ti voglio bene[2].”

 The morning after, for once, Rolfo was still sound asleep when Olivia woke up. She watched his handsome features as he seemed lost somewhere deep in his dreams. The mobster looked so young when he wasn’t awake, almost innocent, even with the wounds staining his honeyed skin. The ever worried look on his face and that little familiar crease between his eyebrows were nowhere to be seen. At times like these, Olivia really wondered how that cute young man she was in love with could be so coarse only a few months ago. On the other hand, she blamed herself for falling for such an asshole. She brushed some stray locks away from his face and smiled lovingly. He scouted closer to her without waking up, and totally relaxed again once he felt her bodily warmth close enough. A soft sigh escaped from his lips. Livia’s hand wandered aimlessly over the skin of his toned chest, carefully avoiding his wounds. She finally rested her hand on his muscular stomach, which she was particularly fond of.

 “-I love you, you clumsy idiot.”

 A mischievous flash of indigo suddenly appeared as Rolfo cracked an eye open, and the sianese guy smiled dreamily as he stretched, pretending he wasn’t surprised, nor moved at any rate by all this.

 “-Oh really?”

 However, his cheeks were gradually turning to an interesting shade of red.

 “-That’s a nice way to say hello to an idiot.”

 The young woman, if she was startled to realize he was awake and heard her words, certainly didn’t expect him to answer to that, and wasn’t surprised at his lack of reaction. However, some part of her did hope for a loving answer, and that part was a little saddened. But she went on talking.

 “-Did you sleep well?”

 All she got was a nod and a tight hug, along with some muffled foreign babbling coupled with kisses against the skin of her throat. She squeaked and laughed as his whole body, still so warm from sleep, snuggled against her frame.

 “-What are you saying down there? Stop this! You’re tickling me!”

 She gently pushed him back and counterattacked with tickles over his ribs. He immediately surrendered, with childish giggles, but when Olivia thought she had won, he pinned her back on the bed, holding her hands over her head. His lips lightly brushed hers, then he leaned back and looked her in the eyes. His voice when he awoke was always rough from too much tobacco, and Olivia could tell by the look on his face that he somewhat wasn’t _that_ sure of himself, yet he spoke steadily, without any hint of hesitation .  

 “-Ti amo. That’s what I was saying.”

  _So much for not getting infatuated._

 Olivia’s face suddenly turned to a burning embarrassed mess. She was glad because he surely couldn’t notice her heavy blush with the half-light of her room and her dark complexion, yet she remained very still for almost a full minute. She would have expected a lot of things from Rolfo, but certainly not such a heartfelt love confession.

 “-Those things you were blubbering, they didn’t sound like “ti amo” at all.

-I was expressing it differently before.

-Say it again.

-I love you, ti amo, I love you so, so much.”

 He smiled and kissed her again, then spoke loving words once more. Rolfo sounded as if a lock inside his head had broken, and he couldn’t stop telling her. Olivia freed one of her hands and lightly traced his jawbone. Her tone was much, much calmer than his, less feverish. Maybe she was just more reserved than he was, but she didn’t mean less.

 “-I love you. And I’ve never been so sad to be on my periods. I’d totally screw you right on the spot.

-Shall we have a bath then?”

 She laughed and shook her head.

 “-I don’t know. It’ll be too slippery to be enjoyable.

-Hm yeah, thought so. Nevermind, amore. I’ll tell you that again, and you’ll mess with me as much as you want.

-Promise?

-Cross my heart.”

 Of course they both knew plenty of tricks to have their way with each other in spite of this, but that wasn’t what they desired. Rolfo surprised himself not wanting hot sex and physical pleasure, but just connexion, love making, the good old way. As for Olivia, she somehow seemed to have understood, maybe she even shared his views, well in any case, she didn’t suggest anything and pulled him closer, making him rest his body over hers. For once, they wouldn’t end up within each other, even if lately, they had a few nights together without having sex, they could still count them on the fingers of one hand. Cuddling and sleeping in would certainly bring a nice change to the heated one on one routine they were accustomed to.

 And somehow, Rolfo discovered he liked that.

[1] You know ?

[2] Very italian, means I love you but not necessarily in a romantic way, although it completely can. Rolfo obviously chose the easy way out here.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING - Heavy warning of eternal doom : dark chapter, contains gore, minor character death, graphic depiction of torture.

**-Chapter XVII-**

 

_First day of December_

 The streets of Wall Market were icy, and if it hadn’t been for the walls surrounding the area, it would have been possible to actually feel the wind gusting in freezing blows, rising goose bumps on every passer-by’s skin.

Don Corneo’s house was comfortably kept warm by huge cast-iron heaters, burning hot in every room. The TV was turned on in Corneo’s lapdogs’room, buzzing some distant sound as Rolfo and Sailor played mahjong and smoked. Business was running slow since autumn had started to give way to winter weather. Drug dealing, yes, it never slowed down, but the Honeybee remained almost always half-empty. People did not bother coming all the way to the Inn with that frost that seemed to last forever.

 Life itself seemed to be dozing off, lazily hidden under the warm blankets of every house in sector 6.

 A fist blow landing on the table broke the peaceful scenery and made the ashtray jump.

 “-Cazzo! You got me on that one.

-Haha, I won. You owe me 10 000 gils.”

 Rolfo crossed his arms as his friend pocketed his money. 10 000 gils weren’t much, but still, losing was annoying. He lit another cigarette and started complaining over again.

 “-I’m dying on my feet, gee, even Wall Market’s getting boring, I swear.

-Winter comes every year, dude, and every year, you’re getting cranky. Just face it, you hate being cold _and_ having to remain inside the building.

-Yeah, you’re right. Maybe we should just move business to Costa del Sol.”

 Sailor smiled. Every single year since they’ve known each other, the black-haired man had been a pain during wintertime. The tattooed guy wasn’t impressed nor surprised by him doing a fuss anymore, and he would just made fun of his friend until springtime, pretty much like every year. That kind of routine between Corneo’s mob members was reassuring, in a way. It meant they were all still alive.

 “-Do you think the Boss will even try to hire new girls? Nobody comes to the Honeybee anymore. Maybe they need some new faces.

-Ha, talk about new faces, they need new pussies, that’s it.

-Always a poet, right, dude?

-Facing reality without wrapping it in a nice red bow, unlike you. New girls won’t change anything if nobody comes to see them.

-But at least they’d keep us warm here for a few nights. Oh well, at least, those of us that don’t have a girlfriend, right, hm?”

 Rolfo shrugged. Olivia might have been granted the status of his official girlfriend since last week, she still worked at the Inn. She said she would think about changing her job, but Rolfo was perfectly aware that being a waitress would pay much less than working at the Inn. And he knew for sure she wasn’t ready to let him support her every need, she was far too independent for that. And that pained him, in a way, for he felt a little pushed aside and he was getting really jealous of the customers. But he understood. Or at least, he tried to. It wasn’t as if he had been raised to think girls were to be married and that the man should be the one earning money. As if Livia would marry anyone, anyway. That girl really knew how to twist and bend his opinion on life, and it drove him mad. Mad with love. Or hate. Or both.

 But Rolfo didn’t want to sound too involved in front of his friend and he tried to act as such.  

 “-I wouldn’t mind some good body heat alright. Hopefully, the Don will find his bed too chilly too and call out for some chicks.

-I hope the gods hear you. I’m getting desperate for some action too.”

 But their wishes weren’t granted. They had wutainese takeaway food while they watched the news broadcast on TV, with the delivery guy’s arrival being the major event of their evening at the mansion. The day stretched until it turned to a neon-lit dusk, and Rolfo gratefully took his leave as Manolo and Jesus arrived for the night shift. Corneo had remained unseen almost all day. Maybe he too was getting bored by winter.

 The little flat that the sianese man rented was situated in the south-side of Wall Market, next to a sex-shop and a 24 hours open convini. It was somewhat messy, as Rolfo was really a living cliché of the single guy in his mid-20s and thus wasn’t the type of doing any more housework than the required minimum. There were no pictures on the wall, however, if you looked closely enough, you could find a single one, almost hidden next to his stereo. His family –and their dog- in front of their house, before they left Siano. That was the only real personal item in the whole apartment. The bedroom had a huge bed designed for lascivious nights, adorned with numerous pillows, and a remarkable wardrobe that would have made any girl sick with jealousy. There was a kitchen but he hardly ever used anything in it but the coffee maker –well he certainly could cook a little, but he wouldn’t spend any extra time on a thing he could easily be provided with, and that only cost him money and no work- and the sitting room was occupied by an old sofa, facing an old TV set, and an almost empty bookshelf that only bore some car magazines, ammunition boxes and Rolfo’s guns whenever he was at home.  

 He hung his coat behind the door, put his guns down on the shelf and let himself fall flat on the couch with a graceless yawn, dropping his cigs and lighter on the small table in front of him in the process.

 “-I swear, I’m even more tired when I haven’t done any shit all day.”

 And that was true. He fell asleep where he had landed within minutes, without even switching the TV on. His phone ringing annoyingly in his breast pocket woke him up, and judging by the dirty daylight that came from the window, it was far too early for Rolfo’s liking. He barked at his interlocutor :

 “-What, for fuck’s sake ?”

 A heavy snort was the first answer he got, then a –barely recognizable- voice started speaking.

 “-Rolfo, my man, you’ve got to come. Enrique’s dead.”

 As he was half-asleep, the information took a few seconds to be registered by Rolfo’s foggy brain.

 “-What ? Enrique ? Dead ? The fuck ? Jake, is that you ?

-Shit, man, wake up, will you? Enrique has been … -a badly hidden sob- By all gods, bro, he was …”

 Rolfo shook his head as he realized that was true, and that was bad. His professional-mode activated automatically.

 “-What happened? Where? Who did this?  

-A waitress from the Calypso bar found him when she left work this morning. He was … He is … Listen, come down here.

-Where are you?

-15th alley.

-I’ll be right there.”

 Five minutes later, Rolfo was ready and leaving. He had never heard Jake in such a state. That guy was a tough one, and even if Enrique was the youngest of them and his death was infuriating, Jake being _that_ moved by someone’s fate was beyond common sense. Rolfo wasn’t sure he wanted to witness what had happened down 15 th alley, but as Corneo’s first lieutenant, that was his duty. Plus, Enrique was one of them, and that called for a well-packed vendetta. He would make sure Corneo’s gang could keep its head high.

 The Calypso was a bar owned by Corneo’s mob, and it was situated on the opposite side of Wall Market, but Rolfo reached it in less that twenty minutes. His heart throbbed in his ribcage as he entered the alley behind said bar. He thought he had seen some shit already, but he understood that he was wrong the minute he turned the first corner. Jake was sitting on a crate, his face expressionless, and Aki just stared at a wall covered with frozen blood, where Rolfo could see what remained of the young guy they once called a friend.

 All Rolfo managed to do was turn around and puke. It wasn’t just the guy being dead, it was about the sadistic display of his tortured body. He was naked to the waist down, with carvings on his torso, pretty much like the ones Aki designed on Harvey a few months ago, his throat had been cut, with his tongue hanging from the wound, and he had been gutted. His body was hanging on the red brick wall, thick nails piercing his wrists.

 Rolfo’s left hand reached the nearest wall for support as he wiped his mouth and lit a cigarette to get rid of the taste –and to cover the smell of blood and guts hanging in the freezing air- He summoned all his will to turn and face this macabre scene once more. Nothing he could say seemed accurate or just sensible. He heard his voice speaking but his brain seemed to have broken a fuse.

 “-Guys… Guys. Did one of you warn the Don already?”

 Aki nodded.

 “-When did that chick found him?

-Four AM, when she left the bar. She called me right away. But can’t say there is much traffic in that alley at night, maybe he had been left there before. Besides, the music in that joint is so loud that nobody could hear anything, that’s for sure.

-You think he was still alive when…?”

 Aki was the most competent of them when it came to the expert art of torture and elaborate executions. The look on the westerner’s face told Rolfo everything he needed to know if the amount of blood on the wall wasn’t already eloquent enough, and the answer that was never phrased did not please Corneo’s man. He cursed under his breath and crushed his cigarette under his heel.

 “-Bastardi figli di puttana[1].”

 Silence fell on the three mobsters as each of them seemed lost in thoughts. Rolfo was the first to regain some ability to think and move. There were tears matting his cheeks in wet and almost immediately freezing streams of water, but he started to pile some crates –the ones in which bars received bottled beers for their customers- against the wall where Enrique’s corpse was crucified.

 Jake made a move to rise from where he was seated but Aki put a hand on his shoulder.

 “-What are you doing, Rolfo-san?

-There is no fucking way in hell I’m leaving Enrique in that state. I’m taking him down.

-Wait, you can’t just ...”

 A mad indigo glare cut his objection short. The anger in his leader's voice made the westerner take an involuntary step backwards.

“-Why? What should I wait for ? For the cops to come? For coroner guys? For a fucking miracle? Io… Io non posso vederlo così[2]…”

Rolfo’s voice dropped when he reached the top of his improvised ladder and found himself face to face with Enrique’s pitiful form. He extended a leather-gloved hand to close his eyes, ragefully wiped his cheeks and shouted at his men, without turning around :

 “-Come and help me, will you, assholes!”

 Un-hanging the youngster was a disgusting and tedious task. Rolfo started by pulling one of the nails out with Aki’s knife, and while the two others held the body in a somewhat acceptable position, he removed the second one and the three of them put Enrique on the ground.

 His body was darn cold, and already stiff. Even with their gloves on, direct contact was disturbing. Without a word, Jake took his scarf off and used it to cover the young man’s face.

 They all stood around the body, not really knowing what was next, waiting for Corneo to come and see, maybe, or just taking some time as reality kicked in. Seeing a corpse was one thing, experiencing the feeling of dead skin –something that your whole instinct has taught you to be soft and warm, and that you actually feel hard and cool- was something else entirely, and somehow, this simple gesture of respect for their fallen comrade had made his death tangible and painfully _true_. Now they were all woken up for good, and they knew this was no stupid nightmare.

 “-What should we do with him now?”

 Rolfo checked his phone. 5:24 AM. Even if the Don had been informed, there was no hope to see him anytime soon down that backwater street.

 “-We’ll take him to the mansion. Get the fucking doc, anyone, call Steven, I don’t know, but we can’t remain here.”

 Steven was what common people would call the undertaker down sector 6 slums, even though he never undertook anybody : bodies were cremated rather than buried, so that they could go back to the lifestream more quickly. Rolfo didn’t really know if that was just religious superstition or reality, since in Siano, where they still practiced the ancient religion, they had churches, elaborate rites, and dead people were buried after a mass had been said. He had heard a rumour about one of these archaic churches that still existed somewhere in the slums, but he couldn’t care less.

 Anyway, anyone would agree on the fact that there wasn’t much room available for any graveyard around Midgar town. The only thing that mattered was to avenge Enrique’s death, and to pay him tribute with any available means in Wall Market.

 And so, Aki dialled Steven’s number. The guy wasn’t pleased at all with being woken at such a time, but a few typically wutainese threats managed to get him out of bed. He arrived carrying a body bag and a stretcher in a disturbingly short amount of time.

 The three guys helped him with the body bag, but none of them wanted to zip the black thing closed. When Steven pulled the metallic device up, hiding the violated flesh from their eyes, Rolfo felt Jake’s arm on his, searching for some human warmth. He supported his friend until they reached Corneo’s house, as Aki and Steven carried their macabre cargo to its destination.

 Don Corneo was still in bed when the lot of them arrived. Rolfo had Enrique’s body stored downstairs, in the dungeon, so that he was left in peace for the moment being. Manolo and Jesus were guarding Corneo’s lair that night, and they already knew, of course. They told Rolfo and the guys that the Don had ordered them to stay still until morning, that anyway, there was nothing they could do for now. Rolfo’s patience was put to harsh test by that news, but that was quite true : there wasn’t anything they could do that early. Steven kept grumbling and left as soon as Enrique’s body was settled. Corneo’s men gathered in their room, hardly exchanging a few words. Quentin, who kept bickering with Enrique all the time, had rushed to the mansion when he had learnt the news, even though he was spending a lustful night with Alma at the Honeybee. The tears flowing on his rounded cheeks were hard to believe. Rolfo scratched his head when the blonde guy entered the room, but he quickly guessed Quentin’s true feelings for Enrique and he physically restrained him when the blonde tried to go and see Enrique’s body.

 “-Calm down, boy. I swear to you, you don’t wanna see him. You really don’t want it.”

 Jake confirmed with such a look on his face that Quentin suddenly calmed down and listened to Rolfo.

 “-I’ll fucking kill anyone who did that to him with my bare hands.

-We’ll avenge him. Lo giuro[3].”

 The mobsters’ faces were stern and closed, jaws tensed and eyes hard. Smoke filled the lackey’s room as they waited for time to pass, TV was running on mute, and nobody talked. Dawn took forever to reach the top of Sector 6’s walls, and Corneo only got up at 9am. Rolfo had used up his last pack of smokes by the time the Boss came down, and the lapdogs almost jumped on the old man’s back as soon as he entered the room.

 “-Capo, this is Finn’s doing. You know it. Let us just kick the bastard’s ass.

-Quiet, quiet, boys. I know this is probably Finn behind that ruthless murder. Poor kid. How old was he, already?”

 The guys exchanged a sad look, and Jake finally managed to speak.

 “-Nineteen.

-Finn attacked one of us, he … You know what he did to Enrique? I only need one word, and we’ll set up a vendetta, Sianese style, Capo.”

 The Don raised his hand to silence Rolfo.

 “-I know what that bastard did. That was to be expected. After all, we ruined the business he tried to smuggle in sector 6 and I sent the Turks to his turf. I understand his move. But, this is something we can’t forgive.

-We’ll kill him and get our hands on sector 3.

-No. I said we won’t forgive, I didn’t say “be impulsive and do foolish things”. ShinRa is on our side for now, thanks to your good work, boys, and they’ll deal personally with that son of a bitch. We shouldn’t interfere with ShinRa’s activity anymore. Double-cross them would be stupid and bad for our business.”

 All the guys looked at each other, just to make sure that they had understood well the implications of Corneo’s words. Then, everybody’s eyes turned to Rolfo. He was dumbstruck by what the boss had just said.

 “-Scusate, Capo, I just don’t get it. Do you mean that we shouldn’t do anything and just forget about it? Enrique’s fucking dead. They tortured him, they violated the kid, boss ! We can't ... Wai-, are you ... Are you scared of Finn ?”

 Tears of frustration and rage were burning Rolfo’s eyelids. He managed to maintain his composure, but his voice sounded broken. The Don didn't even glare at his right-hand man when the latter bluntly brought out his cowardice.    

 “-We won’t forget. We’ll just wait for the ShinRa to dispose of Finn’s dirty business for us, that’s all. Minimum risk, maximum profit.”

 Manolo tried being of some use and took a step forward.

“-No revenge, it’s losing our honor, Boss.

-You Sianese men only think about honor, while I’d rather think about money.”

 Rolfo had no words for what he was experiencing. Jake and Manolo stood along with him, facing the Don with defiant looks. Quentin’s sobs grew in intensity somewhere in the back of the room as Jesus and Aki tried comforting him a little. None of them managed to find anything clever to change the Don’s mind. Corneo took his sweet time to look every single one of his men right in the eye.

 “-Has anyone forgotten who’s in charge here? We’ll make sure Enrique has all the tribute he deserves and I will personally make sure that his family, if he had any, is taken care of. No vendetta.”

 Rolfo bit his lower lip and exploded.

 “-We used to keep our chin high, Don Corneo.

-Now, we’re playing in the big league, my boy. Whether you like it or not.”

      

[1] Sons of a bitch (singular would be bastardo figlio…)

[2] Me… I can’t see him like that.

[3] I swear


End file.
